Our 'Nursery' is Finished!

We have threaded our baby boys into our home, take a look:

This is where our baby boys will be sleeping the first couple of months of their lives...

Notice the frames with their names above... 

Their pacifiers and teething toys are in the buckets made by my mom. Their little library is also here and the brown basket has the diaper stuff in it...

The top drawer of our dresser has their newborn onsies, burp rags, bibs, socks, mittens, beanies, lotion and hair brushes....

Above Andrews side of the closet We have their collection of adorable and variously textured blankets...

In between our clothes we have their tiny hangable outfits, these are from my grandma...

Below, we just bought these containers. We anticipate putting them in the boys room for toys and such when we get an apartment with their own bedroom....

In the bathroom we have their bathing unit...

Taken at my baby shower, this is me and an old friends older sister. She is due the same time as I...

New Project

I have decided to make my best friend a scrapbook. She has been a really great friend lately, and I think she deserves a heartfelt gift. I noticed a lot of cute pictures on her facebook account, so I am going to print them out and scrapbook them for her. I will post pictures of my progress. I don't know how long it will take. I think I have mentioned in the previous posts that my mom scrapbooks. She has agreed to help me get started. Scrapbooking is kind of an expensive hobby, in my opinion, but very fun. It is definitely a challenge of your creativity, my favorite kind of challenge. I have done a few pages myself, but mostly I have used my moms things for cards and such. This also can be fun. Anyway, this was just a quick post before I forgot to mention it. 

Valentines Day Cupcakes

I did make those cupcakes I've been talking about. I used Betty Crocker cake mix and frosting. In total this fun cost me about $5.00. YAY!

 I made the cupcakes last night while watching Kingdom of Heaven [great movie!] with my husband. I refrigerated them over night for easier frosting. [I have this common problem of frosting too soon and cake bits getting mixed with the frosting on top.] Then Andrew and I frosted them this morning after breakfast [I found out Andrew had never frosted cupcakes before and it was very entertaining to watch] and put them on cute plates and put plastic wrap on top. We gave a few to our neighbors and then went to lovely Shaunas house and received an adorable smile as a thank you. We also took some to my family. I really should have made two boxes but oh well.

Shauna's family has a cold so we feel good that we made a few miserable sickies smile. I was able to see her new baby girl and saw the pack n play with a bassinet in action and I thank her for that. I feel more comfortable putting my babies in the one we bought. it is a totally, 100% practical item to purchase. I wish I could have gotten a picture of her set up to show you all but I think that would have been kinda weird ha ha ha! I'm grateful I decided to do this because of my husband. He was great and I could see he enjoyed doing something new for someone else. Shauna's daughters' beautiful smile made it all worth it for him. 

I can't wait to make cupcakes for my son's school class on their birthday. It will be so much fun. When I told my baby brother I was making them cupcakes he asked if I could make him a Link cupcake. Link is the main character in a video game that is popular at my parents house called The Legend of Zelda. I love my brother enough to attempt to oblige his request. This is Link

I don't know where I would start ha ha ha! I'm pretty sure it would require food coloring and candies to create this character. Maybe I could just make a green frosted cupcake with the symbol on the shield made with red sprinkles or icing. I don't know, but I will definitely post a picture of the product. Of course I will need to make a few other characters since a box of cake mix makes 19 cupcakes. My mom bought a giant cupcake maker though....

Maybe I could use that. Anyway, his birthday is in October so I have plenty of time to figure this project out. 

My baby shower is this Thursday. I already bought some thank you notes. I am not sure how many people are going to be there so I have 3 packages of 8 cards. I have never been to a baby shower or had one [of course] but I have learned the art of sending thank you notes well. So I am prepared. I need to remember to get a list of the guests and the gifts they brought in order for this to be easy. I also need to get postage stamps....which are very expensive. If you don't want to purchase these notes you can make them. I think that is going to be my next post. Keep an eye out!

Cutting Board 101

O.K.! So, this is going to be a guide to a very common kitchen gadget for new house wives. This idea came to me today because I was cutting some strawberries for my husbands breakfast (@5:30 am!) and I noticed how gross my cutting board looked. My cutting boards were a gift from my mom, they are plastic. Now they have cuts all over them and they are starting to get stained with vegetables. So I want to buy a new one with our income tax this month. Well, I realized I have no idea what kind to buy! Now there are millions of items that are pure personal preference, and I think your cutting board is one of them. So I did some research. Here is what I found:

Cutting boards come in three materials and they range in cost from dollar store to higher end kitchen specialty store prices.  They come in a variety of sizes and colors. Cutting boards can be built into the counter or they can be fully portable. The current recommendations are you should have at least 3 cutting boards to avoid cross contamination - one for fruits and vegetables and bread, one for red meats and one for poultry. Remember to select the largest size that will fit in your work area, but it should also fit into your sink for easy cleaning. 

• glass - They are resistant to heat, very durable, easy to clean, dishwasher safe, non-staining and they are very sanitary. However glass boards will dull the edges of your knifes very quickly and can even damage them. These boards also pose a danger as they can become very slippery during use creating a cutting hazard to you. They are also very heavy and more expensive than wooden cutting boards. Glass cutting boards are generally pebbled on the cutting surface.

• wood - Wooden boards are made a couple of ways, end grain boards are thicker heavy duty boards made for heavy chopping and edge grain boards are thinner and lighter for everyday use. The different patterns and wood spices are a personal and décor choice for you to choose, what looks best in your kitchen. But if you are the professional chef that uses your board every day under heavy use an end grain maple board will be your best choice. Also any end grain board will be easier on your knifes edges. Some disadvantages of wooden boards, they do require hand cleaning and sanitizing, no dishwashers, then treating with cutting board oil. If cared for properly they will last a very long time. The bottom line is wood is safe, simple and looks great.

• plastic - All are dishwasher safe with the biggest complaint being they do stain. Some plastic compositions stain considerably less than others though. Plastic cutting boards are generally the most affordable and you can find them in a large variety of different designs, sizes and colors. The plastic boards also come thick or thin, hard or flexible. The flexible ones are great for transferring food into pots and containers and they are also easy to store. The downside to the flexible ones is the fact that they will not last as long as the thicker boards. This is because sharp knives will eventually cut through the thin material. The hard thicker plastic boards are very durable. Plastic boards are thought of as being the safest board to use as they are easy to sanitize and clean. But just because they are plastic doesn’t mean you don’t have to sanitize, these boards can harbor bacteria in the cuts on the board therefore needing to be sanitized.  Plastic boards do have the capabilities of being put into a dishwasher as long as they fit.

• bamboo - a well known cutting board that is actually grass. These boards have a natural anti-bacterial action and resist staining with no need for maintenance other than hand washing.They have become popular in kitchens today because of their inexpensive cost. The best feature of these boards is that they take it easy on the edges of your knife but they do scar, but you can sand them down in order to create a smooth surface. They can easily catch bacteria growth in the cuts, so you need to make sure you sanitize them each time you use them. One big disadvantage is the vast majority of these boards come from China and there has been a lot of controversy over the resin holding these boards together being safe or not.

I also found this stuff, which was interestingly contradicting, and some helpful.

Regardless of the material, regular maintenance of a cutting board is important.

• Sanitation with cutting boards is a delicate process, because bacteria can reside in grooves produced by cutting, or in liquids left on the board. For this reason, it is often advised to cut raw meat on separate cutting boards from cooked meat, vegetables or other foods.

• A very dilute bleach solution is best for disinfecting cutting boards.

• To remove odors, rinse the board and then rub with coarse salt and let stand for several minutes. Wipe board and then rinse clean. This procedure will also smooth out minor imperfections in the wood.

• Wood boards should never be placed in the dishwasher, or left immersed for long periods, as the wood or glue may be affected.

• A light food grade mineral oil is a good preservative for wooden cutting boards as it helps keep water from seeping into the grain. Alternatively, one may also use a food grade drying oil such as poppyseed oil, tung oil or linseed oil. The first two dry much faster than linseed. Note that most commercially available linseed and tung oil are not “food grade” as they contain metallic driers. In general, edible savory vegetable or olive oils are not recommended because they tend to go rancid, causing the board to smell and your food to pick up the rancid taste.

• Cutting boards should be treated when they start looking dry to prevent cracking. A standard recommendation is 5-7 times a year, or as needed.

• When heavily or deeply scored, wood or plastic cutting boards should be resurfaced as scoring can harbor bacteria, or mildew in the case of plastic boards. Wood can be easily resurfaced with various woodworking tools, such as scrapers or planes. Sandpaper is to be avoided, as it leaves residual abrasives in the surface which will dull knives. Resurfacing a plastic cutting board is more difficult and replacing it is recommended instead.

I am looking for something that will be easy to clean, wont stain easily, and just plain sanitary. I use my cutting board several  times a day. For fruits in the morning, more fruits or vegetables in the afternoon, and meats, breads, and vegetables in the evening. So after reading my findings ...I still don't know! Ha ha ha!!! But I hope this has helped some of you. 

Camping & an El Paso Morning

This morning, I walked outside with Andrew for his morning cigarette and as I was looking around a memory hit me. I smiled really big and told Andrew about it. The memory was girls camp. In the LDS/Mormon faith, when a young lady turns 14 she is invited to go on a week long camping trip with the other young women of the church. There might be about 200 girls in a campsite. This mornings air was so crisp and fresh, I was just taken back to the mornings of early awakenings by a bugle horn. The mornings of these camping trips were so refreshing. Everything was so natural. I learned so much about myself. I can't believe how much I have changed since then, but at the same time I haven't changed that much. How interesting. It made me think about camping with my parents and siblings. One year we went to Padre Island. 

It was the only time I have been to the beach. I wore a neon orangy red one-piece swimming suit. We all had our own plastic shovel and pail, I filled mine with beach sand and sea shells. My favorite memory [which is pretty foggy] is walking sown the beach with my dad. I don't remember what we were talking about. We saw a beached jelly fish. Some people say they are the most beautiful sights to see, I thought it was gross looking. I remember it was tiny. I don't remember if it was the evening or if it was early morning but it was kind of dark and the horizon was beautiful. I don't think I have ever seen pictures of that trip.... We have also gone to the Gila [pronounced "heela"] Wilderness A LOT, [I took this picture, honestly, during my first girls camp trip]

and we have been to the City of Rocks. 

I can't wait to go camping with my sons and husband. Andrew used to go camping every fall with his dad and best friends. Once, I talked to him about how interesting it will be. When I went, My parents were there, they made it safe and I could go have fun. [Even though most of the time I was helping instead] And the same is with Andrew, his dad was there. The next time we go camping, WE will be the parents, making sure everything is safe. I asked myself before we got married, if I trusted Andrew with our family in the wilderness. Will we be able to work together to keep our kids safe and still have fun and make memories with them? I'm pretty sure I do, or elese I wouldn't be this excited, but I will have to reaccess when we get to that point.... 

Lemon Bars

I have been craving sweets lately but lack the money to run to the store for something. So I started through my cupboards and discovered a box of lemon bars! I loooooove lemon bars. Homemade are much more delicious then boxed but it will have to do. Also, I don't have any powdered sugar to top them with, but perhaps it's for the best, seeing as I really should not indulge myself in the sweets in the first place and the less sugar the better, ha ha ha!
Well, it also seems I have begun to treat my blog as my old journals, as I feared, procrastinating an entry for days. This week has been a bit stressful. On top of some personal issues that surfaced, it seems Andrew and I have met a financial pothole. We needed to make a huge final payment on the car it seems we were obligated to buy and it took up most of his recent paycheck. We were able to receive some help from relatives [that needs to be paid back ASAP] so that we could keep some money for groceries. We had to postpone paying important bills for the first time ever, it makes us feel terrible. We have always prided ourselves with the fact that we always paid our bills early or on time. Now this paycheck, our bills alone add up to $50 more than his check will be. That leaves no money for groceries or other household items that have run low. Currently, I have nothing to clean everyday messes with, I usually use clorox wipes or a paper towel with clorox spray. I have resorted to using the dish washing sponge, which I personally find gross. We also need some things for the medicine cabinet. Our cupboards are pretty bare. Since I decided to buy less food items last week so I would use up the items that have been just sitting around for a few months. We have $20 for gas left this paycheck. I am trying really hard not to show Andrew how stressed I am, But it's hard because he is not trying to hide his concern. I hate seeing him so stressed, he looks especially tired when he is. I keep telling him not to worry, but I can't think of anything to help our situation. Really all we need is to find a bill or two to postpone a little longer so we can buy groceries this week. We are just waiting for his last w2 to come in the mail so we can pay off two major financial hangnails. Hopefully it will come in soon so we can start buying baby stuff. We still have two car seats and a double stroller to buy. I used to think that the stroller was a luxury but the more I think about my daily life the more I think of it as a necessity. It will basically be how I will transport my little loved ones together, ha ha ha! stick the car seats in there and roll! 


Well, lately my posts have been more journal then house tips so I need to much on a lemon bar or two and think of something to write about.... More in a bit.

The black beans were kind of difficult to mash, not at all like pinto beans! I mashed about 2 cups separated into thirds in a shallow, square tupperware container with a regular fork. I couldn't believe I had made an entire bag of beans without realizing I don't own a masher. Maybe it would have been easier if I had a masher, ha ha ha! They looked really weird and dry and I decided they wouldn't work in a burrito at all, so I went to my freezer to see if I could find something to moisten and bind them. I was looking for ground beef or something but saw I had a whole package of chorizo. If you don't know what chorizo is I'm going to tell you to look it up and don't tell me because I don't want to know. All I care about is that it is a pork product and it is spicy. I defrosted the first half and cooked it then threw in the beans. It was delicious! Remember, we had them with cheddar cheese and corn tortillas. I limited hubby to 4, I think, and I had the same. When Andrew came home - he always tells me the house smells good from dinner - he cut some cheese slices and warmed the tortillas. 

This morning I put the left-overs [about a half cups worth] into four scrambled eggs. I make my scrambled eggs with a small amount of milk and no seasonings. That was split in two and we had green grapes on the side with chocolate milk. No, it was not healthy chocolate milk, like Ovaltine, it was just Hershey's syrup in skim milk. [Ovaltine is about $4 a can, and Herheys is only $1.50] Andrews tea pitcher was empty and he was out of the pomegranate-blueberry juice he likes, AND he doesn't like regular milk, so I made him chocolate milk. I knew it would also prevent an argument about the grapes on the side [the fact that they are there would have been the argument]. Ha ha, and people think I'm too young to have kids. Bring it on! I also had chocolate milk, even though I don't like Hersheys milk, because of the irritation in my throat from being sick [I have a cough remember]. It would have left a nasty taste and feeling in my chest and throat. Since Andrew is also sick, I took a sip from his to see if I could handle my own glass before I made it, ha ha ha. I could only drink half of it so I gave the rest to him, which of course he didn't mind. Actually, now that I think about it, I didn't ask if he minded. Well, that was kind of rude of me, oops! 

Today is actually Andrews day off, but he decided to go in at eleven and get some extra hours. So by the time he left, I was very ready for a nap. **Now I have a HUGE dislike for my upstairs neighbor. He is a nice guy, as far as I can tell, but very inconsiderate in my opinion. Kind of in a normal, manish way though, if you know what I mean. Loud T.V. and music during the day is basically my problem. [or his, whichever way you prefer to look at it] We don't have many problems with noise at night. Now, the reason I have a problem with his otherwise normal noise, is because I need quiet to sleep. If there is a T.V. on my brain will follow the conversation and being pregnant my mind is already hard enough to shut off.** Today was such a day that I desperately needed a nap, [I had a headache, my eyes were starting to hurt, and it was making me nauseous.] and I could not because the neighbor decided he wanted to listen to 3 hours of the same CD, which was full of loud Mexican music. I could hear all the lyrics perfectly and my bed was vibrating to the "too loud it was fuzzy" bass beat. I do not find this soothing, I find it a terrible nuisance. Anyway, I tried putting on classical music - I could not put it loud enough to drown out his music, plus with different beats it was more annoying than just his music. I tried ignoring it, but started to cry out of frustration, and because my head hurt so bad, so I took a hot shower. My head started feeling better but his music was still on when I got out so I went to make a sandwich and he turned it of right when I sat down to eat. Yay! Except for the fact that now I was too awake to try to nap. *sigh* Oh, well.At least I didn't shoot his stereo. Like I said, the neighbor is nice enough, it's his stereo that I hate. 

About 2 hours ago, I found out that my childhood best friend is throwing me a baby shower. I started crying really hard because I think she is the perfect person. We have a loooooong history and just recently reconnected. This is such a historically sentimental gesture, I wonder if anyone understands why it made me cry. Basically, we used to play house, dress-up, and talked about our first crushes and marriage together. Who better than the person who knows exactly why this moment and time in your life is important to you? It's not just a baby shower to me. It's everything and it represents everything. I don't think even my husband understands the importance, completely. If she is here in town for her first baby, you can guarantee I will be throwing her first baby shower. 

My best friend, Daniella [in case you don't remember] just delivered her baby boy, 5lbs 8oz. His lungs are not fully developed and so he was having trouble breathing alone at first, but they think he will be healthy enough to go home in regular time [3days] I have said a prayer for her already. She delivered via C-section and is doing great. He was 8 weeks early and they have not picked a name yet. Heck, they don't even have all of the baby stuff yet, like a car seat, poor mama. She is so happy he is finally here though and she can't wait to see her daughter [14 months] and introduce her new brother. Her daughter is quite the attention queen and so this is going to be interesting to watch. I will definitely be asking her about sibling rivalry later, since hers will get there first and it might be different than the twins rivalry.