It's a healthy BOY!!!

Yesterday was a day I had been looking forward to since the moment I found out I was pregnant: our ultrasound. The nerves and tension of desperately hoping everything was developing normally were starting to get to me and I just wanted reassurance that baby was doing well.

This time around, I had a pretty certain feeling that it was a boy, but I couldn't wait until I could be absolutely sure. As I laid down and got that warm jelly spread across my mushy abdomen, the tech asked us if we wanted to know the sex. "YES!" was our immediate response. The moment she touched her instrument to my belly, a clear picture of two spread legs and a little something-something in the middle came into view. There was no question about it! I, of course, got emotional and the tech immediately grabbed a box of tissues like a pro.

Wiggling and moving, baby boy was sucking on his fingers and toes the whole time. I had forgotten how incredible it was to watch him open and close his mouth and re-adjust his position while all I felt were flutters. I felt so blessed to have been given another opportunity to witness this miracle.

After we made our rounds of phone calls and text messages, we started to talk about how incredible it's going to be for Colin to have a little brother. A best friend, a playmate, a wrestling opponent, a protector and partner in crime. I can already imagine the overwhelming love I'll feel watching them interact. I'm well aware there are going to be fights, bruises, whining and a whole lot of chaos. But I wouldn't want it any other way.

Here's to our newest beautiful baby boy and the magic he'll bring to our family. I love you so much already!

What to Expect: Rough Patch Ahead!

If you've ever been pregnant, you may have signed up for these weekly emails from the Parents or What to Expect websites. They're full of good information and I look forward to getting the Fetal Development email that tells me what size fruit my baby compares to this week.

They also include a drawing of what your baby might look like right now and in the beginning stages, all I can see in the pictures they send of the baby is that they look like the creatures Ursela turns the mer-people into in The Little Mermaid. Or a less-creepy version of the "real" mermaid at Ripley's Believe it or Not!.

Random side note - Now I'm thinking about those 4D ultrasounds some hospitals do these days. I got a few pictures when I was pregnant with Colin and they are pretty crazy looking. Here is what I mean:

Regular Ultrasound Picture:



4D Ultrasound Picture:



Shane at one time compared the 4D picture to the cover of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre movie, so I know it's not just me.

Anyway, back to my original thought: I've been getting these emails and while I've gone through it all before, it's interesting and helpful to have these weekly reminders of what my body is doing. Not to mention I sit and plead with my email before I open it that somehow I've time-traveled to week 36 and I'm almost done. I'm beginning to feel like this pregnancy has slowed down to slug speed and I'm not even halfway yet. If I haven't even gotten to the point where I can barely get a seat belt around me, should I really feel like this? I guess I need to write to What to Expect to get them to send a "I know you're sick of being pregnant, here's how to fix it" email.

Next week is our scheduled ultrasound where we'll get to see if baby is healthy, hopefully find out the sex and get some pictures that Shane will deem scary enough to land a horror movie poster. I'm sticking by my prediction and crossing my fingers that this will give me the boost I need to waddle through the last couple of months.

Until next week!

How Open is TOO Open?

Before you read any further, I should just warn you that if you don't think you can be open about my "openness", then don't bother reading this. I don't want to have to censor myself and as you read on (if you chose to) you'll see that's just how I am.

I've always had a harder time connecting with people who can't fully open up. I think it's because I have no problem giving the full story if people ask for it and sometimes I want the same in return. Take childbirth for example. Any part of mine you want to know about, I'll tell you. I'm talking about all the things that other people leave out because they either are embarrassed or want to pretend it didn't happen to them. Now, if any of your minds went to the tales of pooping during delivery, that didn't happen to me, BUT I'd have no problem telling you if it did.

I've always been the girl who would sit in the bathroom while her roommate was showering (or vis versa) and have long talks about whatever was going on in our lives. The girl who is completely honest about only washing her hair 3 times a week. The girl who received a banner from her dance team coaches in high school that said, "Miss Teen Oregon - would you still win if they knew you could burp and fart like a logger". - correction...I can't burp but the other rings true.

The reason I'm bringing this up is because while I was at my friend Missy's bachelorette party a few months ago, I had the most interesting conversation with one of her high school friends while dangling my feet in the hot tub. She had just gotten married and as she began to tell me about her relationship with her husband, I was totally in awe at how different our marriages were. She explained how if they were sitting on the couch watching tv and one of them needed to toot, they would, without letting the other person know, go into another room and try to muffle it. Going to the bathroom was also completely private with shut doors and sometimes waiting until the other person wasn't home before you dropped the kids off.

This eternal honeymoon stage just baffled me! She was completely comfortable living in what I saw as the most uncomfortable way to live. Maybe I'm the strange one, but I've always been most comfortable when I can act completely uninhibited around my partner. If you marry someone, why would you want to put on an act for the rest of your life and never feel like yourself in your own home? To maintain that spark? To keep up a vision of perfection that your partner first saw in you? Those sound like good reasons, but in my mind, if you can't still find your partner attractive after you've found out that they sometimes poop, fart or burp, then I think you might have a hard time finding anyone to settle down with.

I get that some people know it happens, but just don't want to know WHEN it happens. That's fine, to each their own. For me, I'm just saying that I need to feel like the person I am with will love me even if I follow them into the bathroom because I feel like what I have to say is much too important to wait.

This isn't to say that poor Shane has to deal with a wife that doesn't put any effort into being like that girl he first met; I do. I want him to always be able to feel a spark similar to the ones you experience when you first begin dating. I enjoy taking the time to make myself up so he can feel proud to have me on his arm when we go out. But, I also like to come home, put on a pair of sweats and laugh uncontrollably when he lets out one of his Polly Pocket-sized farts.

I guess that's just us!


Thanks for reading and feel free to let me know if I'm crazy! :)

Prediction

I just have to make a really quick comment...I'm about 99.9% sure we're having a boy.

That's all.

Endings and New Beginnings

It's been a busy few weeks at the Foster house. After our friend's wedding, we assumed things would start to slow down, but things just seem to keep popping up!

I started teaching my hip-hop class at All That! dance studio a few weeks ago. It's been going great and there are still quite a few kids in it from when I taught it 2 years ago. The studio will be adding an adult hip-hop class for me to teach after my teen class so I'm hoping they get a good turnout so it can become a regular class in their schedule. We've got a show coming up in December so we will be busy getting the kids ready for their performance.

This Saturday is the Stanford vs. UO Football game and the UO Dance Team is putting on their first ever Alumni Performance! I'm so excited to see some of my old teammates and kick back in the Moshofsky Center like we used to do back in the day! I'm a little nervous to dance with my pot belly/baby bump, especially during a certain "shake your booty" section. I'll cross my fingers I'm in the back for that part. I'll post video after the game!

Lastly, my mom has been here because our house finally sold. The papers are signed today and the new owners get the keys tomorrow afternoon. It's been a long process to sell this house so I've made my peace with it, but it's definitely sad to know that the place I grew up will no longer be available for my trips down memory lane.

That's all for now, here's a picture of my sweet angel to hold you over until I get around to uploading the hundreds of pictures on our camera. :)

Weekend Update with Sarah Foster

Let me just start off by saying that every weekend should be a 3 day weekend....sigh.

I had the most incredible weekend filled with friends, family, food and festivities. It was one I wont soon forget and a large part of that is because I got to attend the beautiful wedding of our dear friends Joe & Missy.

I left work early on Friday so I could continue to bake cupcakes for their rehearsal dinner that evening. I had made one batch ahead of time, but completely underestimated how much time I'd need to make 4 more complete with frosting and decorations while entertaining a small and slightly psychotic little boy.

I decided on flavors earlier in the week so I assumed I had all the necessary ingredients...oh I couldn't have been more wrong! After baking all three flavors, I started on the first frosting: Vanilla Buttercream. This particular recipe calls for heavy whipping cream and I would have bet my favorite shoes on there being an unopened carton in my fridge. Not only was I completely out, but I luckily noticed that I also seemed to be missing a package of confectioners sugar. Colin probably hid it under the bathroom sink (not kidding....you don't know where he'll hide things once he gets his hands on them) but I was just thankful that I noticed it before I went to the store.

Throwing open the door after returning from Fred Meyer, my face was red and sweaty and my arm was starting to throb from holding a wiggly child. I finished my first set of cupcakes and packed them up in one of my cupcake carriers. After completing the other two flavors, I was finally able to pack up the desserts, my kid and myself to go and celebrate with my friends.

The rehearsal dinner was at a gorgeous location and we enjoyed tasty BBQ and good company. I didn't last long though and it was shortly after sunset that my fam packed up our belongings and headed home.

Here are pictures of the cupcakes I made:








On Saturday, Jason and Megan came down from Portland and I drove Colin to Albany so he could stay the night with Grandma & Grandpa Foster. We had an amazing time at the wedding and couldn't have felt more lucky to be in the presence of two people who are so in love and starting their "legal" lives together. :)

On Sunday, we got to see Kristen and while it may not have been the most eventful evening ever, ("What do YOU want to eat? I don't know...what do YOU want to eat?) it doesn't matter what we do because I'll always have fun with that girl!

Monday brought a nice visit with Blake who traveled with his girlfriend from Michigan for the weekend. We also got to spend some time with the newlyweds and The Meisen-Vehrs/Vasey clan while we watched Boise State squeak by Virgina Tech.

It was the best way to spend a three day weekend: with all of the people we love and care about! Here's the the Holiday season and many more long weekends coming our way!

Pregnancy Update

I don't remember much about the beginning of my pregnancy with Colin. It's a bunch of pieces to a puzzle that give me clues as to how I felt. I remember falling asleep on the copy room floor at my job because I couldn't function any longer. I remember eating countless amounts of wheat thins because I felt a light wave of nausea throughout the morning, but not enough to make me unable to function. I remember sleeping away the daylight while Shane hung out with our friends, Jason and Megan.

I'm now 11 weeks pregnant. It's been 6 weeks since I discovered the magical blue plus sign and I can't say it's been easy.

I don't know why I didn't feel any symptoms until after I knew I was pregnant. It's like my body was holding out on me so I had an explanation as to why I was going to bed at 8:30 and unable to button my jeans.

I know I'm a different person these days. It takes a heck of a lot to pull me out from the auto-pilot version of myself that I've become. Get up, get ready, go to work, come home, attempt to give Colin the playfulness I know he wants/needs, feel guilty for failing, bed. That's been my routine. The only reason I've ever been able to slip out of this first trimester coma is because of one person: Shane.

I can't tell you all that I feel when I think about what he's doing for me. I can try, but I already feel my eyes stinging from tears starting to form and once that gets going there is virtually nothing I can do to stop it.

It's not just that he put away my laundry that had been sitting on the floor in our bedroom for a month.

It's not just that he gives me spontaneous massages to help me fall asleep faster.

It's not just that he listens, really listens, to my rants, my whining and my irritable complaints about how I feel.

It's not just that he wrote me a poem in hopes of brightening my afternoon.

.....

It's the way that every day, without hesitation, he makes every effort to make my life easier and more comfortable. How, without spending a penny, he comes up with amazing ways to make me feel like the luckiest woman in the world. I couldn't imagine going through this journey and not having his love and unwavering support.

More now than ever, I love this man.

I know this will get easier. I know I'll start feeling more like myself and that my energy will be replenished. But it would be hard to look to the light at the end of the tunnel if I didn't have Shane's hands to help hold my head up.

So here's to the first trimester almost being over, to the 5 lbs I've quickly gained and to Shane. Oh, and to getting through this post without crying....almost.

Good Things

This week has been pretty awesome so far. We went to the doctor for Colin on Monday and got an update on our boy. Here it is: he's short and chubby with a huge noggin. He only had to get 2 shots (thanks goodness) and was a total pro, especially when he saw the stickers on the table for him.

The next day was my baby appointment and I was SO excited to see my doctor again. I know, who likes their OBGYN? I DO! She is amazing, smart, calm, funny, sarcastic and completely understands me. I could not be more comfortable with any other doctor. To top it off, the nurse we always have, Marcie, is amazing as well. We email them pictures and updates of Colin and I got a huge hug from both when I came back into the doctor's office.

Shane met me there with a grocery bag of food because I was feeling nauseated all day. I've already gained 5 lbs but if eating makes the sick feeling go away then I'll eat until I feel better!

We had our ultrasound and I was amazed at how far along I was already...10 weeks. I was thinking 8 max. Another awesome part of the visit was how much more detail I got at this early ultrasound than I did with Colin's. His picture was of a peanut, but this one showed feet and that kiddo was wiggling around like crazy! My doctor tried to take a peek at the "private area" but nothing had formed yet so we still have a long wait ahead of us to find out what we're having.

All in all things are great. I'm exhausted, but going to bed early solves that. I'm a little sick, but eating all the time helps that. Plus, I've got this incredible husband that not only has been doing ALL the housework, but after I stumbled into bed last night at 8:50, he came in shortly and without hesitation gave me an amazing full body massage. It was exactly what I needed to relax and slip into a deep sleep. I'm one lucky lady.

In a lame attempt to return the favor, tonight I'm making breakfast for dinner with his favorite: waffles!!

That's all for now...thanks for reading!

PS - if you need a good laugh for the day, then watch this:

Jimmy Fallon - Fake Arms

You'll have to search for Part 2 afterward, but trust me it's worth it!!

Bachelorette Party Time!

This weekend was the Bachelorette Party for my friend Missy who is getting married in 2 weeks. She had this amazing lake house set up with everything you need for a fun weekend with some wild ladies. Being knocked up, I knew I'd be completely exhausted if I went both nights so I ended up only going from Saturday to Sunday. This left my Friday night free to go watch Shane's dad perform with his band at his company picnic.

Here's an amazing video Shane got of Colin freaking out when he sees Grandpa and then dancing up a storm with his cousin Molly:

Link to the video

After some good food and family time, we went back to Eugene and went to bed (I think Shane has sympathy exhaustion).

Saturday I made some cupcakes for the bachelorette party and headed over to Florence to meet up with the girls. We sat on the dock for a few hours just talking and snacking on amazing food (french bread and brie!!). After that, it was time to change into our superhero outfits and compete in an obstacle course that some of the girls had set up. Surrounding neighbors later yelled out that they wanted to make bets on us, but I'm sure they were probably happy enough just watching us run around like idiots for an hour or two.

After we changed back into sweats and swimsuits, it was dinner and hot tub time. Now, being that it was 8:30 p.m., I was already tired enough to go to bed....so I did. :) But I hear the girls got some good use out of some random dance mix CD's and the hot tub.

In the morning, I got out the food I had brought for breakfast (croissants, bagels with cream cheese, apple danishes and fruit) and we started to clean up the mess that had accumulated over the past few days. Afterward, I said my goodbyes and left because I was aching to see my boys and I knew I still had a little over an hours worth of driving ahead of me. Luckily, it went by fast and I came home to find my adorable boys sitting on the couch together with a blanket. Who wouldn't love that?!

Shane's sister and her fam came down a few hours later so we could all partake in the never-ending pasta bowl special at The Olive Garden. After one bowl of fettuccine alfredo, I was completely stuffed but had to get just one more bowl, in case I wanted seconds later at home. :) We spent a good hour at the park just playing around and trying to burn off some calories (unsuccessful as most of us were to stuffed to even move) and then we headed back to our place so we could relax and Shane could make us some cookies. Now, even though I was stuffed, you need to understand that my dessert stomach (totally separate) was still empty. They were pretty darn good and completely satisfied my sweet tooth.

After the Ciaffoni clan left, we ended up just relaxing at home with Colin until he could no longer keep his eyes open.

Overall, it was a great weekend...full of family and friends and food!!

Today we have Colin's 17 month check-up and tomorrow is my first baby appointment to learn our due date so we'll keep you posted once find out!

Until then, thanks for reading!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

On Sunday night, I felt the need to bake something since I wanted something sweet (apparently my salty cravings had the night off). This usually calls for cookies because I love to eat the dough while they are baking. I decided to make some peanut butter chocolate chip cookies. Now, this recipe is deadly because they ALWAYS turn out amazing and if you use an ice cream scoop like I do to section out the cookies, they taste just like Otis Spunkmeyer cookies!



Here's the recipe:

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup unsalted butter, softened, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 cup granulated sugar, plus more for sprinkling
1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup creamy peanut butter
6 ounces milk chocolate, coarsely chopped



1. Sift the flour, baking soda, and salt into a medium bowl and set aside.

2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together until fluffy. Scrape down the bowl and add the eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated. The mixture will look light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and peanut butter until just incorporated.

3. Add half of the flour mixture and mix for 15 seconds. Add the remaining flour mixture and mix until just incorporated.

4. Using a spatula or wooden spoon, fold in the chocolate. Cover the bowl tightly and refrigerate for at least 3 hours (you don’t have to, I only did it for an hour).

5. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

6. Drop the dough by rounded tablespoon onto the prepared baking sheets, at least 2 inches apart. Sprinkle the tops of the cookies with granulated sugar and bake for 9 to 11 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through the baking time, until the tops of the cookies just begin to brown. Remove the pan from the oven and cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Use a spatula to transfer the cookies to the rack to cool completely.

I hope you enjoy these cookies as much as my family did!

Just for Megan!

It's been a very, very, VERY long time since I last posted. Life is crazy and I honestly don't know anyone who would be reading this anyway! Well, little did I know that a good friend of mine who sits at her work computer had been checking the blog to see if there would be a new post lately. Whoops!

So this post is for Megan; to not only give her something to look at while she works, but as a thank you for reminding me that I should finish what I started!

I can't recall all the things that have happened since April, but I can fill you in on the most important: I'm pregnant! Shocked, happy, scared and excited are all great ways to describe how I felt when I saw that blue plus sign (actually, two to be exact!).

We're not sure how far along I am, because this came as a total surprise, but we've become increasingly enthusiastic as our first appointment approaches. I'll be very interested to find out my due date and when this little swimmer battled the odds to knock me up (too much?).

In other news, Colin has been growing so fast and learning so much lately. He signs "please", "more" and "eat" and says a hilariously butchered version of "Thank You" that sounds more like "dankgoo". Gotta love it! His next doctor's appointment is Monday and I'm looking forward to seeing how much he's grown physically since our last appointment was around his first birthday.

We've taken him to Amazon Pool a few times this summer and each time he becomes more and more into it. The first time, his death grip around my neck was so tight and any time a kid splashed his face he started to pout and fake cry. (damn you 10 year-olds...are you not thinking of the infants in the pool while you splash about?!) The last time we went, however, for my nephew's 10th birthday party, Colin couldn't get enough of the pool. He laughed at people splashing and was even sticking his face in the water. I know I need to expose him to it more often so he gets used to it, which will probably be a great fall/winter activity for me in an indoor pool while I slowly inflate with baby #2.

In more news, Shane and my 4 year wedding anniversary is in 2 days. I can't believe it's been 4 years since we boogied down to Barry White and the Ying Yang Twins. As a related note, our great friends Joe and Missy are getting married in less than 3 weeks and we could not be more excited!!! Shane is in the wedding party, and I personally am very excited to have an excuse to go out and buy a cute dress. If he's going to be all slick, I gotta look good too, right?? While it kind of stinks that I'll be a DD that night, it might just be for the best so I can fully experience the chaos that I am sure will unfold. Before I found out I was pregnant, I was actually running my very first Half Marathon the day after. I nixed that plan though because I plan on 5+ hours of dancing so my feet will useless for anything other than receiving massages.

There's not much more I have to say, other than: Megan, I vow to be a better blogger!! This one's for you!

I'll leave you now with a link to Shane's YouTube Channel where there are tons of hilarious/adorable video's of Colin laughing.

Adorable Video's of Colin Link!

What weekend?!

This weekend was absolutely crazy. I don't even feel like we had one! Friday night, Shane and I decided to go a U of O Baseball game with Colin. While it was fun to be outside on such a nice night and see the new stadium, it is very difficult to keep control of a 1 year old as all he wanted to do was run around to people who were watching the game. We stayed for about 2 innings (long enough!) and then decided to call it quits and head home.

That night I had made pad thai for dinner from a box (yikes) and it will forever be remembered as a horrible decision. Luckily Shane isn't big on Thai food so he didn't have any, but I woke up feeling slightly sick, like I had drank too much the night before (I had nothing but had eaten about 15 double stuf Oreos...so I assumed that was it). We went to Home Depot and the nausea continued to grow. I was feeling so sick (which is out of character for me) and Shane asked if I could possibly be pregnant. I got freaked out for a second because it could be possible, but at the same time I had a pretty strong sense that pregnancy wasn't the issue. In any case, we decided to get a test just to make sure. One line = relieved Shane and Sarah. So after the short-lived relief, I got even more sick. Full-fledged food poisoning came over me and I was unable to get out of bed all day. Poor Shane was starting to feel sick and had things to do, but instead had to put all that aside to take care of Colin. He is seriously Superman!!

So Sunday rolls around and after some pepto (sick) and lot's of sleep, I was feeling weak but much better. The tables had turned however for Shane. He was feeling much worse. He had already planned for his parents to come down and help us with our backyard though, so he powered through. We decided to redo our lawn because the people before us had no sense of ownership and let their dogs ruin the grass. We rented a rototiller from Home Depot and Shane spent almost 4 hours going back and forth on our lawn getting all the grass broken up. After that, he was completely spent and had to lay down. I finally was able to eat something, so I had gotten some energy back. I took Colin outside with me and I raked all the huge chunks of grass out of the yard and tried to flatten it. We had rented a big roller to level it, so I filled it with water and did that next.

After rolling and raking for a while, I was finally pleased with the level. I fed Colin dinner, gave him a bath and put the little guy to bed and headed back to Home Depot before they closed at 8. I got fertilizer and grass seed and went back home to finish it before I lost all daylight. Well, I got about 40 minutes into it before it was completely dark, but that didn't stop me! I FINALLY finished laying all fertilzer, spread all the seed and rolled it out before heading in. I was exhausted but I still had to watch the Amazing Race (ahhh priorities...reality tv before sleep).

I slept on the couch so Shane wouldn't get me sick and here we are again; it's Monday. I wouldn't take any of it back though, I'm extremely proud of myself for taking on as much as I did and of Shane for how amazing he was while I was swearing off pad thai for life.

I've got a good fam!!

Here's a picture of the yard after I raked it out...

Team CoCo!

We were among the lucky few to get to attend Conan O'Brien's first live comedy show of his new tour, "The Legally Prohibited from Being Funny on Television Tour". Our good friend Kirsten watched the kid for the night and we met some of our other friends at Eugene City Brewery for some drinks before the show. Before we walked in, we had to pass a swarm of cameras and reporters trying to get interviews from ticket holders. Cam, never one to shy away from the limelight, was immediately intrigued and was interviewed by a reporter for The Early Show while the rest of us stood there and grinned like idiots.

After the interview, the reporter asked us to give them a good sign off. Cam is always quick to plug my floundering/stalled website: Caught In Mid Air, so he said, "Let's do a mid air jump! Caughtinmidair.com!" as we all piled on the stairs. At the count of 3, we all jumped into the air screaming Team CoCo! while passersby judged us. Now, I should have mentioned that I was wearing boots...boots with heels mind you, as I performed this jump. That has never stopped me before, and some might recall a rather famous jump I did at Sweet Cheeks Winery with 4 inch heels from a ledge onto concrete (perfection). This was not the case for this jump. As we came close to landing, I felt my feet pass the point of no return for a safe landing and I promptly fell right on my butt! I laughed pretty hard, as did everyone else, but I PRAYED that we wouldn't make it on the air. Not with that jump!

The show was awesome and filled with old skits, new faces and a huge inflatable bat. After it was over, we walked out the same way we came in and I was bombarded with reporters from Inside Edition asking me about the show. Embarrassed by my previous media interlude and still a little tipsy, I spoke my piece and continued on to our car. The next day I waited with butterflies in my stomach for both shows to air. NOTHING! I have never been so happy to watch Inside Edition or The Early Show...ok, I've never actually watched either, but you get my point!

All in all, Conan put on one hell of a show and I still sing the chorus of this song (censored of course)...F*** S*** Stack <---not for the verbally sensitive.

Team CoCo!

It's been a while...

Life is crazy. Let me just start by saying that much! The past few months have been filled with so much stuff I don't even remember most of it. I know there were birthday parties, baby showers, BBQ's, playdates and so much more than I fear it's all turning to mush inside my head.

I had hoped I'd be a little more proactive when it came to writing on this thing, but it turns out I'm finding no time to get the inspiration to write anything. I'll touch on our more recent/interesting adventures and add pictures as I go along.

Colin had surgery yesterday to have tubes inserted into his ears due to a several month long infection in both ears. The doctor said that he had so much fluid build-up that he wouldn't even be able to conduct a hearing test and it seriously devastated me to think about my sweet little boy being in pain this whole time.

I'm not one for just pumping medicine into our bodies whenever we don't feel well, but I do think it's important to use them in order to be able to get the type of rest our bodies need. This has made it really hard on me to think that Colin may have been suffering through these ear problems with no relief. The problem is that he normally is in high spirits. Unless he has a wet diaper, is hungry or tired the kid is smiling and running around the house. Normal, right?!

I'm hoping this alleviates the problems he has had with his ears as I've heard it has done for so many other kids. Fingers crossed!!

In with the new...

The past few weeks have been quite busy for us. I left my job at IDX, Inc. for a position at The Heitman Group, Inc. in South Eugene. It's an awesome location; right next to Civic Stadium and South Eugene High School. I have a great office with a large bay window overlooking the rest of the buildings, plants, etc. I imagine that during the summer it will be very beautiful! I have SO much to learn, it's really intimidating! I've entered into a field where I am a complete novice and I'm trying to just jump in with both feet so I can begin to better understand the company and what they do.

As for the rest of the fam, Shane has been working hard on his own projects at home as well as getting prepared for the big transition of working from home at the end of March. He's been a busy guy and has been doing so much lately...I wonder when he'll run out of steam!

Colin began a new daycare this week: Kindercare. We ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT!!! He is all smiles when we drop him off and pick him up. His teacher is so amazing and I think he probably loves spending his days with other kids and learning all these wonderful new things. It really is such a great place!

Well, I think that is it for now. More pictures of life's recent events to come soon!

Blast from the Past

I found an old photobucket account from 2004, and a video in it was from one of my media classes where we had to draw out scenes to show how a short film that we wrote would be shot. Here was my original film, called "Necklace of Love"... :)

Necklace of Love

Sarah Sarah Bo Berah Banana Fana Fo Farah

It's a Friday night, and I am doing my favorite hobby: baking. I save all the bananas that get a little too brown for us to eat in the freezer so I can use them later on when I want to bake some goodies.

Well, yesterday I went to the store and I tried to put some my new best friends (bags of sweet potato fries) into the freezer...and that's when I saw them. A months worth of bananas just staring back at me.

So, I decided once Colin would go to bed that I would get crackin. I know that's weird, to begin baking at 8:00 at night, but once I get home from work, I like to spend time with Shane and Colin until he goes to bed, then I focus on "me" stuff. A half bottle of Pinot Noir and 2 different batches of banana concoctions later, I realized that I have no idea what I am going to do with all this bread.

I have 2 loaves of regular banana bread, and one huge heart shaped pan of Chocolate Banana Bread (so good...I'll share the recipe below!). It's frustrating that my favorite thing to do is also the reason sweets are a constant present in our house!! Chocolate chip cookies? Oh yes. Toffee Crunch Cheesecake? Uh huh. Chocolate Brownie Fudge cookies? You know it!!

So my decision has come down to this...all of you lovely people I will see tomorrow (Shane's family - I'm talking to you), get ready for some baked treats, from my kitchen to yours. :)

Here's the recipe I was talking about...it's delish!! (and only 268 calories per serving!)

Ingredients for 12 servings

* 1/2 cup margarine, softened
* 1 cup white sugar
* 2 eggs
* 3 bananas, mashed
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
* 1/2 cup light sour cream
* 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease two 9x5 inch loaf pans.
2. In a large bowl, cream together margarine, sugar and eggs. Stir in bananas and vanilla. Sift in flour, baking soda and cocoa; mix well. Blend in sour cream and chocolate chips. Pour batter into prepared pans.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into center of a loaf comes out clean.



Enjoy!!

Am I Hearing You Right?

Yesterday we took Colin in for his 9 month check up. Everything was going so well until our doctor looked into his ears and told us, "He has an ear infection...in both ears." What?! Since when? I had no idea, which made me feel like a bad mom/stranger to him. I always thought you'd KNOW when your kid has an ear infection...screaming, kicking, crying...the signs would all be there. He hasn't had any of these. So this leads me to believe that he must just be a bad ass. What other options are there?!

As for the other man in my life, he's registered for a basketball league with some people in Albany, his old stomping ground. Now that the hassle of signing up/paying is over, I think he's really getting excited to play again and I must say I'm getting just as excited to watch him. There's just something about a basketball player! :)

Lastly, because they made such a big impact on me, I made some chocolate cupcakes with peanut butter frosting this weekend. I don't mean to gloat, but they were pretty dang incredible. So if anyone ever wants a batch of cupcakes for any reason, just let me know...because I am always willing to whip up a few (with a couple extra for me to eat!)

Here's to a Great New Year!

It has been a CRAZY month! I don't think we've had a free weekend or group of consecutive nights with nothing to do for quite some time now. I am definitely not complaining though, we have some amazing friends and family that we've been spending time with lately!

First, here are some more pictures of Christmas. I was definitely saddened to not have the majority of my family around to spend it with. It was bittersweet to have it be Colin's first Christmas, as well as my first Christmas without my family.







For the New Year/Rose Bowl celebration, a group of our friends decided to rent a house in Waldport right on the beach. 11 of us packed up a ton of food, lots of games and our warmest clothes and settled in on Thursday evening. After ringing in the New Year, we watched the Rose Bowl on Friday and after the upsetting loss, we tried to not let it ruin our spirits. How, you ask? By playing Taboo (utter failure), Hide and Seek (yes, we're all over 12) and by stuffing our faces with make-it-yourself pizzas.

Colin had a great time at the house. He loved that we brought some of his new Christmas toys, had new and exciting places to roam and all these people to play with.




On the final full day there, the girls of the house decided to take a trip up to Newport to eat at Mo's, go to Ripley's Believe It or Not, see the seals, and of course, get some delicious sweets. Meanwhile, the guys all decided to try their luck at Three Rivers Casino in Florence. From what I've heard, Shane was the only one who made it back without any fear of telling his significant other how much he had lost. He actually came back with an extra $60!




All in all, we had a great trip. On Sunday morning, Shane and I got up early (as usual) and took Colin to the beach, which was literally just a few steps off the back porch. We loved watching his reaction to the sand, waves, sounds, birds and all the things he saw on in the sand.







All in all, it was an incredible trip. We had so much fun with all of our friends, and it was an awesome way to ring in the New Year so Colin could be involved. I hope you all had an enjoyable Holiday season as well, and we wish you a happy and healthy 2010!