The Shower of the Century

I wish I had more pictures from this wonderful occasion. My dearie friends Megann and Liz did everything and more.  There were over 25 guests! And a gazillion cookies and games and presents and three different kinds of milk and fresh flowers and handmade invitations and lots of love abound. 

A "Cookies and Milk" themed shower. What could be sweeter?

Even the notoriously picky eater, Lisa, found a yummy to smile about!

I remember being nervous that morning. I don't usually get nervous, and I don't mind being the center of attention.  In fact sometimes I rather like it...shocker, I know! I was getting really bashful, surrounded by all that kindness. When Liz and Megann started putting up all the cool decorations --pom poms from the ceiling, paper straws and lanterns--well, I had to take a little break in my room to calm down. I hot rolled my hair to distract myself, for crying out loud. So random.

Hey its me and a diaper wreath! 

Fortunately, I kept my emotional cookies together and there were only a few happy tears at this shower, specifically:

1. Upon opening my dear, wise friend Cecilia's THREE crib sheets. Cecilia and her sage advice about jobs, life, and crib sheets have served me well for almost five years. She is a real smart cookie. And makes fantastic apple butter. And also is an amazing pediatric dentist. Specicially, on the crib sheets, you need three, and should layer them all on the bed with a waterproof mattress pads so you don't have to redress the bed in the middle of the night! Brills.

2. Holding the handmade quilt from bestie, Megann for the first time. It is so soft and beautifully made. I have lovingly held it in my hands many times since April 1st.  I can't wait to take a naked newborn picture of our little man all cuddled up in it.

3. Seeing the "onesie garland" across our mantel. I didn't take it down for days. Same goes for the diaper wreath. Liz, you are amazing and creative and I can't wait to steal those ideas when someone I really care has a baby shower!

Some other moms came up for the day, too. 

It was one of the best days ever. Ever. 

Ever. 

Thanks. And may life smile back at you through the camera lens, too.

Not So Much a Shower, but a Torrential Downpour

Not one, but five baby showers.

That's the generosity equivalent of Monsoon season.

The first was my mother's and sister Kelly's doings. A surprise day of fun in Perrysburg for Kiki and me. We were bestowed with lots of diapers, toys, clothes, "spa products" -- aka Johnson's Baby Wash and Lotion -- and a manicure at the Venetian! Not only did I get one of the better manis of my life there, mom's nail tech was wise enough to scold her in his Vietnamese accent to "Stop picking at your pinky nail or I will be very angry the next time you come in here" as his lady coworkers nodded simultaneously in agreement. Oh mom and her neuroses about her wonky tooth and stumpy pinky fingernails. The woman has 9 healthy fingernails and yet that one looks like it came out of Chernobyl.

My perfect mani...back when my rings still fit...

On of many gift packs of diapers & wipes!

Eston's Cake. No P-burg party is complete without one.

Monday morning decaf and mani looking fresh as a daisy!

***

My second shower was a HUGE SURPRISE, hosted by dear high school bestie friendie, Amy. This shower could be described as "Pregnancy Hormones Get the Best of Kara" as I sobbed hysterically through most of the night. Only happy tears. I'm not talking about a cute weepy moment; no, this was the "ugly cry" usually reserved for episodes of Oprah and "A Baby Story." Nine of my high school friends hauled their cookies up to Powell from the Fort to celebrate babies, lasagne, and delicious Italian soda.

Twas a great night. No pictures of me because my eyes are all swollen shut. Not cute.

***

But guess what WAS cute? The surprise shower from my night clinic buddies at Children's! And this, after me being so grumpy and ungrateful during those 12-hour Tuesday shifts.  So undeserving.

Most of the night clinic gang! Love 'em.

I love Rhonda, too. Can't wait till Baby MoMo is old enough for her to babysit.

Happy to report the Morris family did not waste a SINGLE leftover cupcake! 

Tiffiene, master of ceremonies!

Break room all decked out for Baby MoMo.

It was a great night. We still had to see patients, which was fine, because there was lots of queso dip to enjoy in between...

Highlights from Shower #4 - "The Shower of the Century" and #5 "Plain City Party Time" up next! Stay tuned!

Go, Kiki, GO!

My little sister, Kristin, is simultaneously pregnant with her first munchkin, just like us in the Morris family. Her due date is April 24, which means if all goes as planned, Baby Miller is going to win the arrival race by a nose. It may even be a photo finish.

(Kiki and the lovely Eliza)

As the app on my phone tells me, we are both 39 weeks preggie.

Except she is still coaching track and field at Ft. Loramie Jr. High School. She has practice every night after work, then meets on weekends! I can barely work up motivation to walk to the mailbox...

And this on top of working full time.

And going for long walks with her doggie, Fiona.

And writing the promptest thank you notes humanly possible. Puts me to shame.

While I am just content to enjoy all the pie and Doritos I can procure.

Its a sprint to the finish, Kiki! Get your stopwatch out! You can do it! I love you and am so proud to be the big sister of such a beautiful mommy-to-be.

When I Don't Know What to Say...

...God always has the right words.

Isaiah: 40:28-31

Do you not know? 
   Have you not heard? 
The LORD is the everlasting God, 
   the Creator of the ends of the earth. 
He will not grow tired or weary, 
   and his understanding no one can fathom. 
He gives strength to the weary 
   and increases the power of the weak. 
Even youths grow tired and weary, 
   and young men stumble and fall; 
   but those who hope in the LORD 
   will renew their strength. 
They will soar on wings like eagles; 
   they will run and not grow weary, 
   they will walk and not be faint.


More posts to come this weekend! Promise! Stay tuned!  

Things I am Loving Right Now

This old-ish picture of my goddaughter, Emersyn. I look at it all the time when I need to smile. She is a like this every day. I can't believe how much spirit and personality are tucked into her tiny little frame. We should all be this confident.

My mom and little Peanut. Peanut has a few more weeks of undivided attention. Live it up, puppins. And Mom has recently retired, so she's available for chats about anything 24-7. Much better than data entry, right Mom?

Baby MoMo's cheesy windsuit.

And his sailor suit.

And his daddy.

7 weeks to go!

Recipe 'Rithmetic

In the past, I have usually made Asian food the American way: Open bag of Wanchai Ferry Teriyaki Chicken, replete with its handy sauce packet, and warm it all up in a pan. Easy Peasy Japaneasy. (I couldn't resist.) Occasionally, I will go the extra mile and make a stir fry with a mixture of fresh and frozen vegetables, add some type of meat or fish, and finish with a bottled stir fry sauce. Both taste pretty reasonable and are mindless to prepare, but who knows what kind of mystery ingredients are in those prepared meals and bottled sauces. Furthermore, who knows how much you more you are paying for all that "convenience."

Tonight, for dindin, out of necessity and sheer unwillingness to NOT make a quick, unnecessary run to the grocery store or get fast food for dinner, I decided to concoct a stir fry sauce for with my bare hands and sheer human intellect. Oh, and Google helped, too. See, I had all the ingredients for American Stir Fry #2 except the bottled sauce. No way husby is eating stir-fried frozen vegetables and chicken breast without some kind of sauce chaser.

Ahhh, Google. What did we do without you?

Huge success! Never again will I buy a bottled sauce or those overpriced frozen meals! I found a great recipe online for a simple, homemade stir fry sauce, and it was delicious and easy to make! I have to share! I tweaked it a little, having no Tabasco or Siracha at home, so I will call this one my own, thus no credit to my Googling.

Basic Stir Fry Sauce

1 1/2 sesame oil (In my opinion, this ingredient is a non-negotiable. Sesame oil has so much flavor, so no other oil will really suffice. Just get a bottle and keep it on hand. It will last a long, long time.)

1/2 tsp minced garlic

1/2 tsp minced ginger (Again, an important ingredient. I have ginger paste in my fridge at all times, pretty much because it really doesn't go bad and its fun to throw into lots of Asian dishes for a little extra kick. Trust me. Also good in some baking recipes like gingersnaps. Hmm..I'm hungry again.)

1/2 cup chicken broth

1-2 Tbs. soy sauce (In the words of one of my Asian pals: "Kikkoman. Only use Kikkoman." So I do.)

1/2 tsp chili powder (More if you're feeling dangerous.)

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1 Tbs lemon or juice of half a lemon

1 1/2 tsp cornstarch

Saute the garlic and ginger in the sesame oil for a quick minute then add remaining ingredients EXCEPT the cornstarch. Bring to a boil. Whisk in cornstarch and allow to a simmer. Pour over cooked vegetables and meat and saute for 5 minutes. The sauce will thicken slightly during cooking.

Nom nom nom!

Bonus Points:

# ingredients in this stir fry sauce: 11

Cost of my stir fry sauce: Pennies.

Cost of frozen stir-fry vegetables: $2.

Cost of 12 oz of chicken $2-3 dollars

# ingredients in bottled stir fry sauce (La Choy): 17 (Some of them are scary! Don't even ask about the powdered kind...)

Cost of stir fry sauce: $3

# ingredients in Wanchai Ferry meal: Many, many more than 11.

Cost of Wanchai Ferry meal: $7 (And no way are you getting 12oz of chicken out of that bag, sweetie)

But I do love that panda.

Why I Haven't Blogged/Things I Have Learned

I am not sure why I haven't blogged in three months. I think it stems mostly from not carrying my cameras around and such. The best blogs always seem to start with a good picture.

Also, we moved, which has brought lots of new tasks, most of which involve Swiffers, furniture bargain hunting online, and looking for the perfect throw pillows. I am also trying to cram as much actual paid work into these months before maternity leave, and I'm working on a few unpaid research projects. Its a lot.

Also I have been very preoccupied with the Baby Momo experience. Which brings me to the second portion of my current blog -

Things I Have Learned (About Being Pregnant)

1. The more pregnant you feel, the more excited and ready you are for the big arrival. I don't mean this in an "I-can't-wait-to-not-be-pregnant-anymore" way (although in a few months I am sure I will!) I mean this as in each day my body is less old Kara and more Mommy Kara, and Mommy Kara is every day even more joyful about Baby Momo's upcoming arrival.

2. When you are pregnant, people are really, really nice to you. "Please go ahead." "Oh, aren't you cute." "Do you want this chair?" They also like to feed you, which is good because you are very hungry (to be discussed in more detail later). Total strangers will make eye contact with you and smile knowlingly, which is lovely. Flip side: My wise sister Kelly thinks that this is one reason for post-partum depression. After the baby arrives, its all about them (and rightly so!). But mommies miss those kind acts and that attention. I'm glad I know this in advance.

3. When you are pregnant you will eat a lot more than you normally do. You will think about food a lot more than you used to. You will eat odd combinations of foods, like tortilla chips and ranch dressing. You will go to the store for cold medicine for your husby and return with three pints of ice cream. You may stop in at a UDF for milk and leave with an additional dozen Krispy Kremes. It is lovely and somewhat startling and you will be completely unable to rationalize yourself out of it. The ice cream always wins. Or in this case, Sister Kiki's yummy raspberry cheesecake.

4. After gorging yourself into a delightful sugar coma, you will want to take a nap. You will want to nap a lot, actually. You may also want to elevate your feet. Good thing you have all those pillows.

Pregnancy is a wonderful, happy experience.

As is child rearing, so I am told.