Last Saturday without Blair!

Blair is due home in less than a week now! He will be leaving Iraq in a few days, so please be in prayer for his safety in traveling. Here are some pics to let him know what next Sat. morning will entail :).

We don't like to sleep in on Saturdays, no siree, we are up at 6:45am. Yipee! (dripping with sarcasm of course)
How could you sleep in with this cutie waiting for you?
We like to keep our hair all-natural from the day before (left over pigtails :)).
Do you want to play kitchen with me Daddy?
I'll cook you up some good breakfast real quick!

New Haircut

I have been wanting to change up my hair for awhile and thought it was a good time to do so! I love the end product! This is the first cut that I won't be able to pull ALL my hair back in a pony, but I have finally reached a stage of (increased laziness?) life where that isn't necessary everyday to work out. It seems fairly easy to do and since my hair is so straight, even if I just wash it it will look ok.

Forgive the pic of my face. Look at the hair. Closeups stink. My face actually looks less long in real life with this haircut...

Bailey Update: Egg Allergy

We had another appointment with Bailey's allergist today. They did another round of skin prick testing and Egg White/Egg Yolk was still extremely positive. The doctor did not feel comfortable giving her any amount of egg (even in baked goods) for at least a year. We are know the proud owners an Epi Pen Jr. to use in case she does come in contact with an egg product. I am a little sad for her, but it is rare that the allergy will continue past 5, so hopefully she will outgrown this within the next few years! For now, I am starting to become pretty good at egg-free cooking/baking. The hardest part is when we go out to eat. Oh well, after all we've been through just having one food allergy seems like a walk in the park!

Menu Planning Monday

I have been following a blog that has ladies post their menu's for the week every Monday. It is so interesting to see what people are making and has given me a lot of ideas. I have started doing this more consistently for a few reasons: I am trying to be a better cook, get some meals for the freezer for when after Taylor arrives, and eat healthier (less eating out). It is important to note that Bailey has a severe egg allergy and cannot have any food with any amount of egg in it. I have been able to save a lot of $ by planning my menus! Here is my food plan for the week:

Breakfasts:
Cereal with soy milk (a bailey fav!)
Oatmeal/ Cream of Wheat hot cereal mixture
Mini whole wheat bagels with cream cheese

Lunches:
PB +J (Bailey), cheese stick, fruit
Egg Salad sand (me)
Shredded BBQ Chicken sand with baked beans (shredded chicken already cooked in freezer)
leftovers

Snacks (for me):
Veggie sticks
Fruit
Tortilla chips (I seem to crave a few of these every day!)
Cheese cubes

Dinners:
Pork fried rice without egg (using already cooked pork tend. from freezer), fruit
Spaghetti with whole wheat pasta, green beans
Mexican Bake (from freezer-made 2 last time), side salad
Easy Chicken Pot Pie (chicken/veggie mixture over biscuits)

Next time I will try and post my recipe links. These are all mostly "in my head" :). I am excited for the Pork Fried Rice- I actually have never made Fried Rice before!

My friend Olivia

Bailey and I had the pleasure of having Olivia last night while her parent's enjoyed a night out. Olivia is almost exactly 1 year older then Bailey and it is always neat to see what Bales will be doing "in the future". Olivia is very advanced in talking for her age though and kept me laughing with some of the things she said. Needless to say, we had a lot of fun!

Olivia and Bailey saying "Cheese"

Cousin Alice!

Bailey and I were able to visit with Jonathan, Lindsay and Baby Alice this weekend. We had a blast getting to know Alice...she is really a good baby. Lindsay is an awesome Mom! We were able to have a couple of Alice's first outings. Bailey really never paid attention to Alice, which I think is good in a way- hopefully we won't have major jealousy issues (especially since Daddy can give her some extra attention). She loved when Uncle Johnny got home and chased her around the house.

Thanks for letting us come visit guys! We miss you so much already. Soon, ANOTHER girl cousin is on the way :).

Taylor and I at 30 1/2 weeks. Getting big! (no signs of major fluid retention/ blood pressure issues :))!
Bailey, I and baby Alice.
I lover her so much! Miss you baby Alice...don't forget your Aunt Sara. (Taylor didn't like it so much when I was holding Alice on my belly- she would fight for some room :)).
Um, what is this?
Cousin love! (17 months apart)

Happy Valentine's Day!

I received these gorgeous flowers in the mail today...yes, mail! It is the company called ProFlowers that sends the flowers UPS. They look great- Gerber Daisy's are my favorite! Thanks Allison (and Jason) for letting us know about this company. Blair did very well :).

A friend and I took our girls to a drop in daycare and went to see a movie this afternoon. I even splurged on a drink and snack! The movie was good and Bailey did fairly well at the daycare.

Only 3 more weeks to go!

Pizza night :)

I have tried to be very diligent with having a Menu Plan weekly and USING it :). Pizza is one of Bailey's top foods, and well, mine too :). I have been wanting to give homemade pizza another try and this one turned out a winner! I cheated and used the crust you buy in the roll (dairy isle), but I had a commissary and manufactures coupon so it was cheap!

For this pizza I made 1/2 BBQ Chicken (with chicken, pineapple, onion and bbq sauce) and 1/2 Hawaiin. These are my two personal faves...I wasn't sure if Bailey would like the BBQ one. They both turned out well, especially the BBQ Chicken! It was healthy and yummy.

On the menu for this week:
Crockpot Stroganoff- turned out very well! (I found a beef strip steak on sale 50% off this week!)
Pork Fried Rice (no egg)- have yet to make
Pizza
Beans/Rice/Sausage
I also made some eggless whole wheat applesauce bread that we have been enjoying for breakfasts/snacks.

Close up of the BBQ chicken half

1/2 and 1/2
Bailey thought it was good. Isn't she just the cutest?
Eating some stand alone pineapple
Bailey of video enjoying her pizza.

29 weeks

I am now 29 weeks and doing much better :). I have been seeing a nutritionist and have gained ZERO pounds in the last few weeks. This is really good news, as I was gaining weight a little too much too quickly. Hopefully this trend will continue and I will be able to stay on target from now on out.

Blair is set to come home in about 3 weeks!! We are getting very exciting that the time is winding down.

29 weeks
Bailey and I (at least an attempt :)).

Bailey says her words

Watch Bailey say some of her words! I couldn't think of them all....These are the ones she says consistently that I can currently think of. She adds more it seems everyday!
Dada
Mama
Cat
Car
Jace (her boyfriend)
Juice
Eat
E (she can recognize this letter)
O (she can recognize this letter)
Ball
Book
Banana "nana"
Block
Cookie
Cracker (sounds a lot like cookie)
Cheese
Frog "Grog"
Dog "Gog"- she barks now too :)
Fish
Crab
Bug
Bye bye
Night night
Duck duck
uh oh
We are working very hard on please and thank you, but they have yet to take hold!

Eggless Banana Bread

Last night I was wondering what we were going to have for breakfast. We are all out of milk and Bailey had had her normal bagel routine for a couple of days. I was tired of egg sandwiches. I went online and found a great eggless banana bread! Here is the link:

http://www.recipezaar.com/Eggless-Banana-Bread-177031

I was trying to make it even healthier so I used all whole wheat flour, decreased the butter a little bit and added a tad more applesauce. I also left out the chocolate and walnuts.

This was a very good bread for breakfast. Bailey gave her stamp of approval by eating a whole warmed up slice with a little butter. :).

BBQ Bailey

We had a yummy meal of pulled chicken sandwiches, baked beans and fruit for dinner. Bailey loved it- as you can see on her face :).

Alice Adele Cellon has arrived!

Alice Adele is here! Jonathan and Lindsay (Blair's brother and sister in law) had their daughter at 5:50 pm on 1/29/09. She weighed in at 7lbs 120z. Last time I talked with them they all were doing well, just tired (welcome to parenthood guys!). Blair and I are Uncle/Aunt's for the first time and Alice is Bailey's only cousin. We are so excited!! Taylor and Alice should be less then 3 months apart...I can see these 3 getting into lots of fun stuff when they visit Grandma and Grandpa Cellon's.

Isn't she just adorable?

Proud papa.
Same dark hair as Bales (but looks a little curly?), but I don't see any other resemblance to Bailey.

We will be praying for all 3 of you as you adjust.....can't wait to meet Alice!

T-37ish days and T-90ish days!!!

I finally feel like I can begin some countdowns! We have received word on a "window" of when to expect Blair home. Of course, this is just an estimate as EVERYTHING in the Marine Corps is subject to change ;). So...my countdown is T-36ish days.

Taylor's arrival is expected within the next 90 days. So scary! I have entered the third trimester and am noticing my belly is beginning to get in the way a bit. Thankfully, the kidney stone has either moved or is gone (PRAISE GOD!). I feel so much better. I am seeing a nutritionist to make sure I am doing everything I can do prevent the preeclampsia from coming to visit this pregnancy. Basically I am trying a higher protein, lower sodium (well at least not high sodium) diet. She has also gotten on to me about working out.....but, in my defense I've been sick with 2 colds, bronchitis and a kidney stone the last 6 weeks. Oh, and I'm pregnant ;). No more excuses though..I feel better and need to kick things in gear. I've been active the last 2 days and made better choices when I went out to Chick-Fil-A with the girls.

Will try and take some pics this week and post them...we haven't been doing anything much picture worthy lately.....
Thank you all so much for the prayers, calls, and messages. God heard them as did I!

Pregnancy Update: 26 weeks and 4 days

Things have been pretty interesting around here the last few days. It all began last Sat. with the inkling that I may be developing another UTI (had one earlier in the pregnancy that was fairly difficult to treat). Due to MLK and the snow storm, the clinic wasn't open until Wed. By then I was feeling pretty miserable. The midwife couldn't fit me in, but I asked if I could just come in and give a urinalysis and she could order the antibiotics if needed as I was pretty uncomfortable. She did. Around 1100 I went to the lab. At 3:00pm she called me with unexpected results: I had a kidney stone! My back had REALLY started to hurt by then, I just didn't think stone, you know? I had had one before (6 weeks after Bailey was born). Luckily, my "heaven-sent" friend Allison came and got Bailey and I headed to L+D to get treated. The biggest risk is preterm labor. After 2L of fluids, Fentanyl and Phenergan I was feeling a little better. Taylor handled it all well and I was showing no contractions :). They sent me home with pain meds to take. Overall, I am still in quite a bit of pain, but just trying to wait until I pass it. Bailey's pregnancy was riddled with Preclampsia and I was so hoping this one would go "without serious worries". I pray it passes soon and complications don't arise. My BP was elevated, but then again....my pain was a 9/10 :(. Guess what the risk factors for developing a stone in pregnancy are? 1. Previous hx of stones (which I have) 2. Hx of complicated preg/ preterm delivery (Bailey) 3. Hx of previous UTI in that pregnancy (yes) .

Thank you all for your prayers and offers for help. I am taking it every day at a time. The best thing seems to be just relaxing and keeping distracted. It is frustrating to not be very mobile as my right flank starts to REALLY hurt if I do anything physical.

Sara

video of bailey in the snow

Here is a video of Bales and her first snow experience. Sorry about the abrupt ending...you can see she stepped in a big puddle! Luckily her shoes kept her socks dry. Why is it every kid will find a puddle if their is one to be found? I didn't even see it until I heard the splashing :). She had a lot of fun, but is still uncertain with this stuff called "snow" (which she says now!).

Snow pics

Precious little snow prints
Bailey walking in the snow :)
See all the snow on her gloves? She was having so much fuN!

Lots and lots of snow!

As you can see, we have gotten quite a bit of snow today and it keeps on coming!

This is around 1000am or so

4pm when we headed outside.
Snow accumulation over an inch...and counting!
Bailey's first experience with snow "on the ground"

One of those days

What do you do when it is really cold outside and you are sick? You snuggle up with your blankie and froggie of course! We have spent a couple mornings this week like this.....hopefully we will feel better soon, but until then we are enjoying the extra down time just hanging out.

PEEKABOO!

Enjoy these two videos of Bailey and Jace playing Peekaboo!

Snow is coming!!!

Today Tue, Jan 20 Wed, Jan 21 Thu, Jan 22 Fri, Jan 23 Sat, Jan 24 Sun, Jan 25 Mon, Jan 26 Tue, Jan 27 Wed, Jan 28

Hourly Forecast more details

6am 36°F Feels Like 28°F

9am 36°F Feels Like 27°F

12pm 35°F Feels Like 26°F

3pm 34°F Feels Like 24°F

6pm 33°F Feels Like 24°F

9pm 31°F Feels Like 22°F

Day	Night
Rain / Snow High 36°F Precip 70% Wind: NNW 17 mph Max. Humidity: 68% UV Index: 2 Low Sunrise: 7:15 AM ET Avg. High: 55°F Record High: N/A	Snow Showers Early Overnight Low

No Bake Frugal Granola Bars- Yummy!

I had found a recipe for no bake granola bars and thought to give it a try.... I could use some cheaper alternatives to all of Bailey's snack foods! This recipe is fairly healthy..I substituted cheerios for crispy rice cereal (didn't have any). I think I will always make it with Cheerios though. It turned out really well. This made 24 bars!!! Try finding that many for the price to make these at the store. I plan on adding some wheat germ and something to bump up the protein (powder maybe?) next time. I froze 3/4 of these to pull out when we need them (the website said they freeze well). So far- Bailey and I really have enjoyed them.
LINK:
http://www.recipezaar.com/No-Bake-Granola-Bars-60235

Bailey and Jace 1/13/09

I had the privilege of watching Jace the day before his Daddy got back from Afghanistan. This gave his mommy time to get some stuff done without constantly having to pick up after a 1 year old (God bless them)! Jace and Baily had a ball and always enjoy playing together. They recognize one another and now say each other's names!!! I think they are adorable.

This is Jace at 15 months.
Bales
Trying to get a pic with both of them...they were both standing a second ago.....darn digital camera. I tried having them both sit, stand..anything and they would move instantaneously! Not a good age for pics :).