Meal Plan - Week 7

So last week was a bit of a "wash" from a meal planning perspective ... I have two recipes on this week's plan from last week's plan.

Sunday - Leftover Chipotle
Guess what Natalie and I had for lunch today :)

Monday - Fuss-free Ravioli and Cheese Bake
Thanks to the Organizing Junkie, I am going to give this recipe a try ... and hope it's plenty filling for my hubby just returning from a Mt. Rainier Summit :)

Tuesday - Jack's Ranch Chicken
I've been looking for a new chicken recipe, and this one includes bacon ... still craving bacon at this point in my pregnancy. Yummo!

Wednesday - Easy Tacos
This is always a good stand-by and a crowd-pleaser, a good combination when feeding another out-of-town guest :)

Thursday - Concert in the Park Picnic
It may be time for KFC fried chicken again!

Friday - Mexican Fiesta
CPV and I are enjoying a date night - with a big group of friends - while Mimi babysits ... can't wait!

Saturday - Beef Brisket
I am hoping I can talk my mother-in-law into making her famous and delicious recipe ... what a treat that would be! The leftovers will serve us nicely after she's gone, too!

To be honest, I am losing my gusto for meal planning, but I am proud that I've stuck with it for 7 weeks in a row now ... woo hoo!

A Quick Trip to the ER

Is there really such a thing as a quick trip to the ER? Well, friends, from my experience on Thursday night, I'd have to say absolutely and thankfully.

As I was finishing up a evening of phone conversations - spreading the news of Baby V 2.0, female version to those who don't access the Internet on a regular basis (crazy, I know!) ... or should I say, those who feel they need to hear it from my voice rather than read it on my blog ... high maintenance, I tell ya! (Love you, Grammy and Mimi!) ... where was I?

Oh, yeah, I was getting off the phone, it was almost bedtime, and CPV and NHV were playing like daddies and their little girls do ... much rougher than I would play with her, but good for her nonetheless. Natalie was behind Chad with her arms stretched up toward his neck. He was crouched down reaching over his shoulder to grab her hands. As he stood up, there was a quick holler of pain from our baby girl. I instantly knew in my mommy heart that she wasn't okay. CPV set her down, and I attempted to soother her. Within a few seconds, I could tell her arm was hurting. But she did get calm, and as long as her arm wasn't moved, she stayed that way. Based on the few "test" moves I did of her arm, I thought it was her shoulder - come to find out, that is a a common mommy misdiagnosis for this injury.

A quick call to our awesome family doctor (N's pediatrician, my OB and doctor, C's doctor) confirmed that it was probably her elbow. More specifically an injury called nursemaid's elbow, which is a partial dislocation of the elbow. And it sounds much worse than it is ... I say this mainly because visually Natalie's elbow looked totally fine and once we immobilized the arm, she didn't appear to be in any pain. Of course,all of this caused a bit of deja vu for us because NHV had this same injury, on the same arm when she was 7 months old.

Anyway, Chad was feeling awful like it was his fault. I was feeling relieved that Natalie was calm and we knew what to do ... head to the ER so that doctor there could reset the elbow. The minute we walked through the doors, we were greeted, asked for some basic information, and escorted by a nurse to a examining room. No time spent in the waiting room! We had two nurses helping us - asking questions about medical history, taking vitals, evaluating NHV's condition. Within about five minutes a doctor came to reset her arm. This process was a little tough because Natalie cried due to stranger anxiety as much as the procedure itself. But she did great and settled right back down when it was over.

We spent another five minutes - without the doctor - getting Natalie to walk around, turn pages of a book with her reset arm, and reach to give us a high five. The doctor was back in a few minutes, checked to make sure she was, indeed, okay, and gave us discharge papers. It was as pleasant an experience as I can imagine for a trip to the ER!

My Secret Revealed

Thank you so much for humoring me and playing along with my secret-keeping. Your comments made this surprise even more exciting and fun and full of happiness.

But I've savored my secret long enough ... and both grandmothers are in the know - please understand, you all couldn't know before them :)

And so it's time for the big reveal ... since Natalie made the announcement, it only seems right that the big sister tell the gender, too.

Natalie is actually saying the word "girl" in this picture; how cute is that? We had a quick photo shoot after her nap today, and yes, I did dress her all in PINK on purpose; I'm clever like that :)

And here's further evidence ... our envelope/note from the ultrasound technician ... you know, the one that light was (surprisingly) able to penetrate:

Oh, and from yesterday's I've Got a Secret post, 8 comments (and the vast majority of my family) guessed BOY, while only 4 comments guessed GIRL. And pretty much every comment called me a tease ... sorry about that and thank you again for putting up with me and making this so much fun :)

I've Got a Secret

Aren't secrets delicious? Like tiny morsels of yumminess melting in your mouth. I've been savoring this one all day. And let me tell you, secrets are more than delicious. They are powerful. Pounding in your heart. Pulsing through your veins. Ringing in your ears. It's so unlike me to keep a secret bubbling inside.

First of all, finding out this secret wasn't intentional. I didn't mean to find out. I wasn't even sure I wanted to know. Because, if you know me, you know that I like not know as much as I like knowing.

• If you're new here and wondering what in the world I am blogging about, you may want to start here. This will all make more sense, I promise.

• If you frequent my randomness, then this is your last chance to continue not knowing. I'm giving you one day to decide. Soon this delightful little secret will come bursting out me ... well, in December that may be quite literal ... but my news will be delivered much sooner than that ;)
  

Oh, boy, I am seriously rambling ... to keep myself from typing out the three words that are itching the tips of my fingers right now ... but I am not ready to spit it out ... still savoring.

But I do want to explain how I found out - accidentally ...

Today was my 20-week ultrasound appointment, and I arrived still not sure if we should find out the gender of Baby V 2.0. CPV and I talked and talked and talked about it. Before falling asleep last night. Over breakfast this morning. Sitting in the waiting room. Waiting in the exam room. I remained uncertain. CPV was leaning - heavily - toward finding out the baby's gender.

We finally came to a compromise. We would ask the technician to write it down and seal it in an envelope. That way we would have the option of knowing once we left the office. This seemed like a better alternative than making a call to the doctor's office weeks later when we just couldn't stand not knowing for another second. At least this way, we'd be in control of the information. That's the rationalization that caused me to cave and agree to the envelope.

The technician was more than happy to comply with our super-rationalized wish. He also provided us a detailed, informative ultrasound including 3D images, measurements matching my due date, news of a healthy baby, and a DVD of the whole experience.

Feet crossed at the ankles

Envelope in hand, we made the short drive to the nearest Jimmy John's restaurant. At this point in my pregnancy, I am averaging a Turkey Tom sandwich about three times per week. It's ridiculous, I know, but I cannot stop! Anyway, that little white envelope joined us for lunch, and more discussion ensued. Should we find out? Should we open that darn envelope? When should we open it? Could we know and not tell anyone else? Ha! That was CPV's thought. A man who has known me for about half my existence doesn't know me very well if he thinks that information was going to go unshared for 20 more weeks. If I know, everyone else has to know ... mainly because my face is one big tell.

Anyway, I was still very much undecided at this point.

And then in slow motion, I saw CPV grab the envelope and lift it up to the light. He claims - quite adamantly - that he didn't think he'd actually be able to see it.

Regardless my eyes followed, ... and now I know ... which means, I've got a secret!

Feel free to leave a comment with your guess ... pink or blue?

What'd you say? - Sentence Edition

Chuckle 1:

During dinner tonight, Natalie was eating grilled cheese and tomato soup. After dipping her sandwich pieces in the soup, she dumped the rest onto her tray and proceeded to finger paint. I didn't mind this little activity because a) I had already striped her down and b) she was happily entertaining herself - that's good stuff.

As I went to check on the leftover heating up in the oven, Natalie called, "Mommy," to get my attention. Just as I made eye contact, a huge smile spread across her face, and she said, "Na-Na make smiley face."

Sure enough; she had drawn a smiley face - at least her interpretation - in her tomato soup. Even better than her artwork was the way she proclaimed it to me; she was just beaming!

Chuckle 2:

As she pranced around wearing lavender leggings (a size too small but she insisted), a hair elastic around the upper part of her arm, and a shiny, red beaded necklace around her waist, Natalie chanted, "Ina reena. Ina reena. Ina reena."

Chad and I were fairly certain she was proclaiming some type of intestinal issue. It sounded to us like she was saying, "I have diarrhea." In typical daddy fashion, CPV commented, "That can't be good." But I knew - from the lack of odor - that Natalie was saying something else.

When I couldn't understand what she was saying, Natalie maintained her cool.

She said, "Zoe." I repeated, "Zoe."

She gave me another clue, "Tutu."

Aha! I figured it out - call me Momma Holmes.

Oh, of course, Natalie was being a BALLERINA! Thankfully it wasn't the runny poos!

Bananas for Breakfast

Two little monkeys sitting side-by-side

Their cuteness certainly cannot be denied

A whole banana each insisted
Peeling had to be unassisted


Watching some Curious George on TV
Wondering why she's taking pictures of me


A nibble here, maybe even a bite
Withholding smiles with all their might

What a SupahHonor!

Guess what! While I've been entertaining out-of-town guests and totally blog-slack-a-lacking, my crazy friend - in real-life (we taught together years ago) and here in blogworld - SupahMommy bestowed upon me a great honor ... she gave me an award on her blog.

It's the Loyal Friend and Visitor Award.

How sweet is that?

You really should take a minute to read her award-bestowing post because it's hilarious ... her praise for me includes the words nepotism and SUCK IT! Now, that's loyalty at its finest! How can I help but be seriously touched by her gesture?

In return - and probably without as much eloquence as SupahMommy - I would like to pass along this award to my friend Carrie at The Mad Adventures of Oliver Shawn.

• She's a fellow 5th grade teacher (as I once was), and I have mad love for my peeps!
• She helped me survive the first time I left Natalie overnight (last summer at ITP); she left her Ollie, too, and we commiserated for the three nights, four days.
• She is a great photographer and phenomenal scrapbooker. I have her (and her Cricut) to thank for the awesome V canvas I created for Chitown Momma's baby girl.
• She motivated me to take swimming lessons with Natalie this summer.
• She is so funny and real and down-to-earth; I always look forward to spending time with her and her handsome boy!

A very honorable mention goes to Chitown Momma - who guest blogged here. I can't give her the award because she doesn't have a blog on which to put it, but she should. She really, really should. Wait, maybe not ... if she starts her own blog maybe she won't have enough time to comment on like every single post I write ... I really need to make an award for "Most Likely to Comment." That's my Chitown Momma!