Nursery Room tour

i absolutely LOVE my daughter's room it's so peaceful. i am constantly redecorating it but that is ok, it's my right, ha! when I was pregnant and started looking for nursery ideas I knew I wanted neutral colors that were bright, calm and clean looking. i didn't want loud, dark or bold. i finally settled on white, grey and yellow before I knew that I was having a girl. of course the pink gifts were inevitable and most of them were adorable so I used them in decor and i think it worked out well. originally I had a beautiful yellow tree with birds behind the crib but since we moved and I had to take down the wall decal it wasn't reusable. it was so pretty though, I miss it.

so...thought i'd do a tour of it just for fun. Enjoy!

{the 4 walls}

{details}

Baby food making: plums!

I have really enjoyed making fresh and delicious foods for my daughter. Then watching her enjoy it is so rewarding...that's the nerdy little momma within me! He..he..he I don't care though, I'm just excited to have a wonderful, healthy baby girl. This recipe was so simple. I got some organic plums and peeled, steamed, then pureed them. For half of the batch I added some steamed apples and made a plum-applesauce combo. Oh my! Zariah really loved it. Refrigerate enough for 2-3 days then freeze the rest and there you go....easy peasy CHEAP baby food, done. 

Baby food making: Ratatouille!

Easy...easy...easy! A meal for mommy & baby (BONUS!)

You'll need:

1/4 cup of olive oil

1 can of diced tomatoes (or whole tomatoes)

1 eggplant

1 medium onion

1-2 zucchini

1-2 yellow squash

1-2 red or yellow bell peppers

1 tablespoon of garlic 

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

Add your favorite herbs (fresh or dry) I used pepper, sage, oregano and basil.  

Directions:

In a crock pot add the olive oil and the can of tomatoes, cook on high while you peel and chop all of the veggies into cubes (easier for baby to eat when it's chopped up smaller). 

Add in all the veggies then splash in the red wine vinegar and top with all of your herbs, mix and let it cook on high for about 3 hours. Done!

For baby: puree, if needed, or baby can eat it just like that if they prefer. 

For mommy & family: serve and enjoy!

It's so yummy and healthy, I personally did not think that it needed any salt. The tomatoes gave it such great flavor. Hope you'll try and enjoy it. 

[I had forgotten to take a picture of it when it was cooked fresh, this picture above was leftovers the next day and I added a turkey burger patty that I had just to change it up a bit. Another idea, add some fresh quinoa to it and YUMMO!!]

My very 1st Mother's Day

What a special new holiday to me!

I was so grateful to actually be able to participate in the Mother's Day celebration with all the wonderful momma's around the globe. Last year I was an expectant mother but WOW did time fly. Now I have a 7 month old and I just can't believe it. She's amazing in every way. I'm certain that all momma's feel the same way but I am truly grateful for my blessings! Since hubby slacked on the gift I wanted (hehe BOYS!) it was sold out so he gave me the option of choosing a present. So naturally I decided to give him baby/diaper duty all weekend. That worked out well. Momma got the weekend off (sorta) and I had time to bake a new macaroon recipe, clean the entire house and give myself a manicure & pedicure all in one day. Then Saturday I got to spend the day shopping  which is fun for any girl! I got treated to lunch and Starbucks, the weather so beautiful that I felt like I was on vacation. 

And finally Sunday I woke up to sweet love notes all over the house from daddy & Zariah. I enjoyed the day, went to church and got treated to dinner & frozen yogurt! A perfect way to spend the weekend. 

I can't complain. 

I'm blessed!

 Cocoa Hazelnut Macaroons! Yum! I will share the recipe soon, I promise.

 

My handmade card from my lil sweetheart. Love it! 

Dessert & Dinner!! :)

My very own little!

My daughter is 6 months old....don't really know how that happened so quickly but it's true. I am really grateful that she is such a happy, healthy and fun little baby. She really is a joy, the first couple months were such a crazy adjustment to this Parenthood thing. My baby suffered from severe and painful acid reflux. It broke my heart but once we figured that out we immediately put her on meds and they helped her greatly. She needed them until around 5 months old. She outgrew it just like the doctors said. So we have started giving her solid foods. Since I'm a SAHM I have time to make all her foods and I really enjoy it, honestly. I get to bake, boil, steam and puree everything that my little person eats. It's exciting  for her and I. She enjoys every bite. She loves to eat and sleep these days......she is soooooooo my daughter. Sleeping & eating are my most favorite things, hers too these days. She used to get so hungry that she would wake up every couple hours at night just to eat and go back to sleep immediately  But now....thank God, she sleeps from 10-12 hours at night and usually takes 2 naps a day for as long as 2 hours. It is amazing! I get so much done during the day....but then I miss her while she is napping.
I'm so thrilled that she is growing by leaps and bounds! She's such a doll. Can you imagine how excited I am?!
I am O B S E S S E D with taking pictures of her, it's kind of ridiculous but oh well....she's my baby I can do what I want. LOL!
Here are just a few fun pictures from the last week or two.

 This is quite comical...I give her a ball to play with  but when she discovered the tag on the boppie she left the ball to the side and had a field day with the tag, Ha! My little girl is hilarious. 

No need to buy toys, if something has a tag she'll be entertained. 

 In the mornings I find her with one leg free from her jammies and not one button undone...I'm always  impressed!

Who can resist chunky little baby thighs?! Not I! 

It's 2013!

Happy New Year! I don't know about anyone else but 2013 sounds strange to say. This year has taken off rather quickly for me. As far as resolutions I don't really believe in them, I'd rather say goals because I feel like they are far less likely to disappoint . Anyhow, I'm back to work which I love but I'm missing my little sweetheart a ton. It's not the same to see her just a couple hours a day now. Being a working mom is hard! I've come to the conclusion that single moms are SUPER HEROES!!! How do they do it? I've got my hubby that helps me a ton and I'm so grateful for him.
So my little one is now 3 months old.... Wow....how did that happen?
She's such a cutie pie, I could just eat her all up!
Here's a picture of us today doing just a little growth comparison. It's amazing how so much happens in just a few weeks.

Hope your new year is off to a wonderful start.
Love!

Love like no other!

It's so true....everything that you hear about mothers discovering a new kind of love in their children. I never knew that feeling until about 6 weeks ago! It really changes you, having a kid. I got an adorable little girl and she is so much fun. Thankfully she is healthy too! The tiny clothes and shoes [that barely fit her petite physique...LOL] are just so adorable. I said I wouldn't do it but she is like my own personal doll. I'm so excited to have my baby here, finally after 10 months of preparation and anticipation. The holidays now have an entire new meaning and I sure plan on enjoying them. It's the beginning of December & I hope you all are having a great holiday season so far. May you hug, love on, and enjoy your family and your little darlings to no end. I know I am!

Be blessed!

My favorite thing to do! 

Happy Holidays....Merry Christmas....Happy New Year....May God bless you & yours!

A precious package has arrived!

Great news!!! My little angel is finally here!
A week ago today I was able to experience the most beautiful thing in the world! Child birth! My precious daughter Zariah Isabel was born on October 16th at 12:08am and weighed 6lbs 14oz. Boy has my life changed already! It's the sweetest thing to fall in love with such a little person that is completely dependent on me. The whole experience was amazing. I was in labor for about 9 hours but the truly serious part of labor lasted just under 3 hours...I was so blessed to have a quick, natural delivery. And now just a week later I have to say that besides the lack of sleep I feel great! My favorite thing to do is hold my baby girl and smell her! I'm so blessed!
Becoming a parent is an experience like no other and I'm so glad to be able to have become someone's "momma."

Projects & Painting!!

It's true we are approximately 6 days away from the expected arrival of our little one! Setting up for her grand appearance has taken priority the last few days especially since I'm home now. So I have some projects to share. I have letters that I'll be hanging around her room and I really enjoyed painting them. It was pretty fun! I bought these letters at Hobby Lobby they are made of thick cardboard. Then on the back I glued felt loops in order to be able to hang them.

I used them, as is, for my recent baby shower.

Decoration was courtesy of my friend!

I also had the wooden letters " Z & I" that were given to me by a friend!

So I had my husband spray paint them all. 

Then I added my own touch to the letters using some white paint, a circular sponge brush and regular paint brush.

I'm pretty happy with the final result. I'll post pics of the final nursery details when its all finished! I'm so excited for that but my poor feet can only handle so much decorating daily. I have to take breaks often. 

I'll also be adding this flag banner to her room...my sweet friend made this for me! 

Hope your inspired to get creative, get crafty and decorate your own space.

Lovely Day!

Oh my is the weather today amazing!! It's 59 degrees outside and I am loving it. Fall is here!

Watching football, eating and relaxing at home with the windows open makes for a perfect day with this weather. I'm officially on maternity leave so it's nice to be home and enjoy the day. 

I feel like this weather inspires me to do more around the house. I just love it. 

So I did a final countdown picture...it's approximately 1 week until our lil girl makes her appearance. 

I must say anticipation is high and I cant wait to meet the lil bun in my oven :) 

The weekend is for enjoying...hope you're doing just that! 

Life lately...

Life Lately....

Baby News! We are approximately 3 weeks away from D-day. I can hardly believe it. My lil one is growing, stretching and kicking. I'm so excited to finally meet her very soon. Weekly appointments are under way and we get to see her in sonograms. It's so cute to see her little face and arms, etc. Her room is being prepared and after 2 wonderful baby showers we have so many things for her already. Our baby is blessed. I've begun washing her clothes and packing her hospital bag. YAY! Her name has been decided and we are in love with it...... check out how we announced it to our family! 

Washing her laundry and getting her room ready!

Daddy getting her bassinet ready!

Her expected arrival! 

Family! My dad and uncle came to visit me and it was such a delight! I actually got to take my dad to a Marc Anthony concert!! So much fun...I'll need to post videos and pics of that later. Anyhow, I love having family visit it's refreshing.

My daddy still buys me treats! 

Us at the Alamo!

Current Reads! Of course pregnancy books... Supernatural Pregnancy by Jackie Mize, What to expect when you're expecting by Heidi Murkoff 

Music! I love the new album by Maroon 5 called Overexposed! Marc Anthony has been on my current playlist as well. 

Movies! I recently saw 'A little bit of Heaven' on Netflix and it was pretty good. Sad movie but I liked it. I also watched the movie 'What to expect when you're expecting' it wasn't as good as I had expected but it had its funny moments. I loved the 'Amazing Spiderman' great movie!  

Work! I'm winding down to the last days of work but I'm keeping busy and making money until the last moment possible. I really think that the time I am out on maternity leave that I am going to miss my job and co-workers but it will be well worth it to be with my lil one!

Current Favorites! Sleeping....grilled cheese sandwiches....chocolate chip cookies.....the smell of my daughter's freshly washed clothes....being in bed watching tv/movies for hours....house projects & re-decorating....laying still and feeling my precious bundle of joy kick & move....seeing my husband's reaction as he feels her move.....having my belly and feet rubbed!