Feeling Thankful

Hey Friends! After a two week hiatus from the Farmer's Market; we were back there this weekend and stocked up a bit. The FM was closed due to a huge car show/contest at the show grounds that hosts the FM. It was great to be back there; I always enjoy the accordion music as I stroll through all the stalls offering their delights. This week's specialties: corn on zee cob, 1/2 watermelon, chocolate chip muffin, beetroot, carrot, apple juice for the road, our usual apple juice and one head o' cauliflower! yum!

It's good to have the FM back for a couple of weeks before it closes down again for the Canberra Show (aka. fair)

In other foodie news: I made homemade chicken noodle soup for the first time ever. I even home made the noodles. It turned out SO.GOOD! I have continued to have it for lunch for the past several days too! I will definitely do that more often! We served it up with a "sorta" cob salad and some fresh outta the oven bread.

Today I am feeling very grateful. I told you all a while ago that this year I am keeping a "Gratitude Journal" where I write something I am thankful for each day. Here are a couple of recent entries.

I am thankful for my friend and yoga instructor. She has taught me so much. Each time I leave yoga with her, I feel more relaxed and like I have learned so much.

I am thankful for the seemingly never-ending stalls of fresh fruits and veg that I get to purchase to feed my family. I am so thankful that we have food on our table each day and that I have the perfect opportunity to "play" with food and learn new things about food.

I am thankful for clothing that I am so fortunate to hang on my line.

As I sit here and eat my peanut m and m's, I am thankful for my great Auntie Mona who once told me that peanut m and m's are health food...they have peanuts in them after all!!!

Enjoy today!

Girl's Night Out

With my two fave girlies! Matt hosted poker night with the guys last night so the girls and I hit the town. We saw the new Alvin and the Chipmunks movie and had popcorn, peanut m and m's and soda for dinner! What a fun and special night to spend with my sweet girls!

As we were getting ready to go to bed, we read a book that had a list of "profile" questions in it. I found out that Destiny's favorite color is blue and Addi's favorite color is red. When Destiny grows up she wants to be a "big" dance teacher and when Addi grows up she wants to be a lady bug.

Special moments with my special girls. I can't believe there is going to be a third child in the mix sooner than we know it!

Enjoy today!

You say Potato, I say Potato!

Potatoes:
I would eat them in a house
I would eat them with a mouse
I would eat them with a fox
I would eat them in a box
I would eat them here or there
I would eat them ANYWHERE!
(Thank you Dr. Suess for the inspiration!)

I crave potatoes, the whiter and creamier the better. The crazy thing is since starting my life transformation (losing 75 lbs) I have pretty much kicked white potatoes to the curb, but for some reason in the pregnancy that is ALL I want to eat!

Speaking of eating. I now am a firm believer in 4th meal. This is the meal I eat in bed right before I go to sleep. It usually consists of a peanut butter and jelly bagel or scrambled eggs (I'm strange...I already know this!) Thanks to my sweet husband (who got me into this mess ;) He is my "midnight" chef!
Here is a picture of me on New Year's Eve. 10 weeks along then. I am now about 12 weeks or so along.

I visited my general practitioner in order to get a referral to an OBGYN here in Canberra. The appointment went well. She gave me a due date of mid-July and sent me off for blood work. The funniest question she asked was, "Have you changed your eating habits?" (implying that I eat unhealthy on a regular basis). I said no and told her that I keep a pretty healthy diet all the time. However, in my mind I was thinking that I have let a few extra calories in knowing that I am going to gain some weight anyways. What's a handful of pringles and some extra banana bars every now and then :)

Fun little pregnancy facts this time around:

I have had zero morning sickness (I had it BAD with both D and A)

I am still jogging and thrilled to be doing that

The girls will tell anyone and everyone that "mommy has a baby in her tummy" (It will go over a lot better when my tummy actually starts to show a bit)

I am really tired at 7 PM every evening; and have missed out on tucking the girls into bed because I go to sleep before they do.

I have nearly 20 friends who are pregnant right now too; such a fun network to have!

That's all for today, but I look forward to telling you about my first appointment with my OBGYN that is next week!

Enjoy today!

Over the River and Through the Woods a Camping we Did GO!

Scratch that...actually...make it...THROUGH the RIVER and over the bush a camping we did go! Yeah that's right, we drove through a river in order to get to "the perfect" camp spot :) On the drive there I looked over at Matt and said, "Hey, it's kind of strange that we can bring Dusty along to a campground, most of them around here don't allow dogs." Matt turned to me and said, "Oh, we are not going to a campground." I replied frantically, "So, are there going to be toilets?!?!?". The answer..."NO"! That's what I get for letting the MAN plan the trip!

The girls enjoyed overseeing the set up of the camp.

A quick trip to the beach was in order after we were all set up.

Then dinner and campfire time. We camped with two other families, one happens to live on the other side of our block and this was the first time we met them :)The next day was HOT. It was spent swimming and sitting in the shade.

Getting ready for another yummy dinner.

Self-portrait.

Addi playing with the babe.

Our dinner consisted of shrimp, lamb, yummy mint pesto, and a squash tomato mixture. So yummy!

Addi found the sun screen.

We had to show her how "pretty" she looked. I think she was confused! ha!

Shortly after this we went to bed...and awoke in the middle of the night with a swimming pool in our tent. Who knew it would rain.

All in all it was a blast camping and we really enjoyed the families who were there. Dusty even made a friend or two herself ;)

Be back tomorrow with my first pregnancy post (It's about time...I'm only 3 months along! Geez!)

Enjoy today!

Hiking and Picnics in the City

Hello Friends!

These past few weeks have been pretty relaxed at work for Matt so we have had some fun adventures here in Canberra! In our effort to check off all of the local parks, walking trails, etc. from a list we have, we visited a new equestrian trail the other day.

It's amazing that this is located right within the city! It looks like country to me!

After walking a bit, we stopped off for a quick picnic! yum!

It was a fantastic afternoon, filled with fun, family, and sun! I'll be back tomorrow with some special pictures from a camping trip we took last weekend!

Enjoy today!

It's not easy being 2...and a half!

Hey friends! How is your day? Did you know that we now have a 4 and a half and a 2 and a half year old in this house! Not to mention the little baby growing in my belly! Wow, things are going to get busy around here! (Come and visit any time to see first hand :)

To celebrate her halfness, Addi had yummy ice cream dessert on New Years Day (her half birthday)!

She also created a beautifully colored picture for her cousin Jordy.

For the girls' half birthdays, they get to choose something to create and choose who to create it for to teach them the "spirit of giving". It's a very special and fun celebration!

Likewise, in the spirit of appreciation, I have started a gratitude journal for this year. I would love to include some of my entries from my journal in the blog. I have found that the gratitude journal is a beautiful way to document what has happened each day: the big, the small, the things that make me smile, laugh, or cry.

What are you doing this year? Any resolutions? I have noticed the amount of people walking at 6 AM has increased by quite a lot. We'll see how many of them last until next week ;)

Enjoy today!

Taking the Bus into 2012!

Hey Friends! Happy New Year! 2012 is going to be a great one and we started it out in a fantastic way. We rode a bus to Sydney with a group of people from the Embassy to enjoy the fireworks show from a skyscraper that houses the U.S. Consulate right down town in Sydney! The girls thought the bus ride was ultra cool!Matt and I enjoyed finding another Starbucks in Sydney (we don't have one in Canberra).

Then out to dinner at a fancy steakhouse at Darling Harbour.

I was honored to be complimented by our table neighbors. They told us that our children were very well behaved. That made this momma glow :)

The BIG Christmas Tree in the city.

Ready to celebrate!

Looking out the window at Sydney Harbour.

Matt was ringing in the New Year with good friends/work buddies and a bottle of wine; don't forget the party hat :).

And the show started! There was a 9 PM show and a 12 AM show. It was incredible.

For your viewing pleasure; 12 minutes of wonderful fireworks. The best ones are at about the 10 minute mark! Enjoy!

Enjoy today! HAPPY NEW YEAR!