The ABC's of Me

I found this post on the blog - Riding the IVF Roller Coaster as I was going through the April ICLW list and thought it was a cute idea!! Enjoy a little insight into my life!

The ABC's of Me:

• A: Amusement Parks When I was younger (actually until I was around 16) I hated thrill rides. I wouldn't go on them. The thought of roller coasters scared me to death. It wasn't until I met my husband and we went to Six Flags that he finally got me on a roller coast - that was the moment I fell in love. Today, I LOVE thrill rides, I still get scared but that's part of the fun!
• B: Boobs I told my husband when I'm done breastfeeding all of my kids (we want 3 or 4) and if my boobs are gross and saggy, I want a boob lift. I don't want to go through my 30's with saggy, unattractive boobs!
• C: Children I knew I always wanted kids but I always had the mindset that I might not be able to have them. I thought that my irregular periods would interfere. I know now, that no matter what, natural or with help I will be able to give Claire brothers or sisters. I have hope!
• D: Daughter  On July 10th 2009, I gave birth to the perfect little angel, Claire Constance. She is the sweetest and cutest little girl in the whole world. She has made my life worth living! She brings joy to my heart and with her around, there is never a dull moment. 
• E: Eric My loving and charming husband of almost 3 1/2 years! He is the glue that holds our family together. He works so hard for us and I'm able to be a SAHM because of him and for that I am so grateful! Does he drive me nuts sometimes? Yes, but what good husband doesn't!
• F: Future I'm excited to see what the future has in store for my family and I. More kids, moving, master's degree, new jobs!!
• G: Grandparents I miss them every single day! I have one Nana that is still with us and she is wonderful. I love her very much. She's so cute! Eric has two grandparents living and they both are wonderful people. I think of them as my real grandparents but I think about my grandparents that have passed every day. When I am sad or need strength I will talk to them! I know that they are my guardian angels and watch over Claire and I every day!!
• H: Home We have a great home, one Eric and I made together 2 months before we got married. I love our home, it is full charm and the wall contain tons of memories. Sadly, we are ready to move on. We are in need of a big house, yard, and more storage space. It will be hard to say goodbye because this was the first home I slept in the night after my wedding, it was the home I brought my first baby home to! We definitely made this house a home!
• I: Iceland Eric and I want to go to Iceland for our 5 year wedding anniversary. We first found out about Iceland from the movie "Hostel 2". It was the part with the Blue Lagoons that got us. The Blue Lagoons is a natural hot springs. It's beautiful. As we researched Iceland more, we found out it has so much to offer - Volcanoes, Mountains, Glaciers, Lagoons, etc... I hope our dream can become a reality!
• J: Jillian I am doing Jillian Michael 30 day shred. It's a great work out and I am really enjoying it. I try to get at least 2-3 days of it in a week! I highly recommend it!
• K: Kyle My brother. We are 4 years and 2 days apart. Let me tell you, we've had our moments of hating each other but now we are great friends and loving siblings. He is a very funny and caring person. I am lucky to have him as a brother and an uncle to Claire. He's a fantastic uncle - you can tell he's in love with his niece!
• L:  Lansing Illinois - that's where I live. It's where I have lived since I was 9 years old. We moved from Kansas when my dad got transferred for his job. Although I left all of my friends in Kansas, it was nice to move to Lansing because that's where my dad had grown up, so my grandparents and uncle/aunts still lived in the area! I'm glad I moved here because if I didn't I would never have married Eric and I can't imagine my life without him. He's the butter to my bread!
• M: Moving I use to love the thought of moving but now with the stupid economy, selling a house is almost impossible. I'm a pessimist but I am trying to have hope!
• N: Nicholas Sparks I absolutely love his books. Once I start reading them, they are so hard to put  down. My favorite is "The Rescue".
• O: October My favorite month. I love the smell of fall - dried leaves, crisp cool air, bon fires. I think I look better in fall/winter clothes too. You know, a cute pair of jeans and a great sweater. Plus, Halloween is one of my favorite holidays!!
• P: Photography I love taking pictures. My new favorite subject is Claire. I secretly dream of being a  photographer!
• Q:  Quiet This word does not apply in our house. We are a loud family. We like to singing at the top of our lungs, we say and do funny things, and now Claire loves to scream, squeal, and talk very loud!
• R: Red it's one of my favorite colors. It is the color in my kitchen. I can't wait to move, so I am able to paint another room red!
  
• S: Snakes I HATE snakes. My first bad experience of one was when I was 3. I was playing in my backyard (which had a drainage ditch behind our fence) when I first saw it. It was big - black and orange. It was so scary - I remember my dog at the time coming, barking at it as I ran inside. From that day, I have been deathly scared of snakes!
• T: Talum Mayan ruins in Mexico that Eric and I visited on our Honeymoon. They sit on a cliff, over looking the Caribbean Sea! It is full of history and is absolutely beautiful!! I can't wait to take my kids there some day!
• U: Uterus I hope it will allow me to have more babies!
• V: Van I remember the time when I said, I would NEVER drive a minivan! Ha! Was I wrong. I would love a minivan and all the space that comes along with it. We have a 2008 Chrysler Sebring and it's a wonderful car but with the stroller in the trunk, we have no room for anything else. I can't wait to be a minivan momma!
• W: Widstrand My last name - it means "Wide Beach". It's Swedish!
• X: X-ray I've only had a couple of them in my lifetime. Thank goodness!
• Y: Yummy Some of my favorite foods are: Salads, My dad's mushroom cheeseburgers, ice cream, chips and salsa, Mexican food!
• Z: Zoo I'm hoping I can go there for Mother's Day. We have a wonderful zoo in our area (Brookfield Zoo - Chicago) and the last time we were there, was November. It was cold and not too enjoyable so I can't wait to take Claire back. I think she will love it and really get into it this time!!

Wordless Wednesday

Claire's stinky face!

Ever Since I've Given Birth

Ever since I've given birth I've become the most clumsiest person ever! I really don't think I can go a day without getting hurt, even the tiniest bit. It's crazy! No, actually it's pretty hilarious. At least I can laugh at myself. I have bruise on my legs, 2 on each to be exact. Those are all from hitting either our glass coffee table, our bed, dresser, door...I could keep going. Just tonight, I rammed my leg into my parents coffee table as I was getting up. I just say a "lovely" word and then laughed and said, "one more bump or bruise to add to the others!" Then, when I got home, I was reaching for my vacuum Swiffer and it hit me in the face, yes, the face! I told you - it's gotten really bad! Oh, this one's good - I was moving Claire's toy box over and I rammed my back into our door frame, that hurt! Well, I'm sure in a day or two (more like an hour or so) I could add to the list of bruises. I can't wait to see what happens after I have more kids - hopefully the clumsiness doesn't get worse or God help all of us!

Organizing

ORGANIZING.

That's what I am doing this week. My house is actually pretty well organized, but with selling a house you need to be even more organized.

I cleaned out my hall closet and tossed all the lotions, hair products, nail polish, and such that I haven't used in a couple of months (or longer). 

I filled a whole plastic tub with bath towels, wash cloths, and hand towels. For our wedding shower, we got an overabundance of  towels. I'm pretty sure we haven't used every single one of them in the 3 1/2 years we've been married. By packing away most of that, my hall closet as a lot of room and it now looks clutter free!

My closet is another story. Oy! I have so many pairs of shoes, purses, and let's not forget tops. Our closets in our house are not that big but I can sure cram a lot of clothing items and accessories in them.

I went through all my clothes and am giving items I haven't worn in awhile or have had since I was in high school to Goodwill.

I've tried to go through my shoes and purses but I just can't come to terms to part with them. I have the thought - "well, you never know when I will need that pair of shoes or that color of purse again". 

I'm not too upset with myself because I did pretty well with narrowing down all my clothes. 

My kitchen; I love my kitchen for being such a tiny house. Our kitchen is super nice with tons of storage. There isn't too much I need to get done in there. I just need to maintain everything in perfect order! This is one area my loving husband is going to have to work on. He is notorious for leaving all of his coffee mugs all over the house and in the sink. I sometimes think he forgets how to open the dishwasher!

I just hope all my organizing and being critical pays off!! At least while we are trying to sell, my house will be in tip, top shape!! (I hope)

Friendship Quotes

I found some quotes that show how I feel about all of my friendships:

"The friendship that can cease has never been real."
- Saint Jerome 

"Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art... It has no survival value; rather is one of those things that give value to survival."
- C. S. Lewis 

"An honest answer is the sign of true friendship."
- Proverbs 24:26

"I'll lean on you and you lean on me and we'll be okay."
- Dave Matthews Band

"Lean on me, when you're not strong, and I'll be your friend, I'll help you carry on, for it won't be long, 'til I'm going to need somebody to lean on."
- "Lean On Me" 

"I get by with a little help from my friends."
- John Lennon 

"Ill stand by you, take me into your darkest hour, i wont let nobody hurt you, ill stand by you, and, ill never desert you"
- The Pretenders 

To all of my friends (you know who you are) - I love you and I am very thankful for each and everyone of you! 

Recipe Sunday

This weeks recipe is a: California Grilled Cheese Sandwich. This recipe is a nice little twist to the normal, grilled cheese sandwich.


What you need:

Two pieces of wheat (or white) bread
One to two slices of your favorite cheese. (I prefer Coby Jack)
One avocado (cut into slices)
3-4 pieces of bacon (extra crispy for me) (you will need to cook it before hand)
A little bit of butter

What you do:

Butter one side of each piece of bread. Lay the butter side down on the skillet. Add your cheese, avocado, and bacon. Put the other piece of bread butter side up on to the rest of the sandwich. Wait a few minutes (depending on how crispy you like your bread) and then flip. You might need to flip the sandwich a few times to get the color (crispiness) you prefer. Make sure the cheese has melted all the way around the sandwich before removing it from the skillet!! Enjoy!

It's Official

It's official!! 

Our house is on the market!

We have a sign in our front yard and the listing will go up online on Monday! 

Fingers crossed that we will sell our house very quickly!

Now wish us luck to keep it "Better Homes and Gardens" perfect all the freakin' time!!

Garage Sale Season

I am SO excited, I love garage sale season.

We have a weekly newspaper "The Shopper" that comes every Wednesday. In that paper - holds the list of all the local garage sales for Illinois and Indiana. Wednesday it comes and Friday we go out "shopping".

I hope to find some great deals this year. I hope to find outside toys for Claire. I would love to find an outside playhouse, sand toys, even a sand box would be great, maybe a toddler climbing gym. I have high hopes.

I am a bargain shopper. I enjoy a good deal and I love the clearance racks at stores. So garage sales are right up my alley. (Ha! No pun intended!) Not all garage sales are great, some have junk, some are filled with grandma and grandpa knickknacks but once in awhile you will come across the best garage sale ever. I hope to at least find one or two of those this year. Ones that I will feel proud to spend my money at.

I can't wait! I just hope the weather can start staying nice, so more people will have garage sales, which in turn will allow me to find some awesome deals!!

Happy Earth Day

Happy Earth Day!!

How our family helps the Earth:

1. We Recycle everything we can

2. We use cloth diapers for Claire

3. We plant flowers (which I will be in the next couple weeks)

4. We don't buy bottle water anymore

5. We use all organic cleaning products

How do you and your family help the Earth??

She's a Biter

My daughter is now a biter.

It hurts, really bad.

Let's hope her 2 teeth become 3 or 4 teeth very soon.

She bites me every where. 

When I pick her up, she bites my shoulder.

When she pulls up on me, she bites my knee.

When I am cuddling with her, she bites my arm.

When I am feeding her, she bites my nipple.

It's hurts, really bad.

She thinks it's funny. 

She laughs, a belly laugh when I say the word "no!"

I pray that it is teething and not just a stage!

Finger crossed some teeth pop up in the very near future so the biting can STOP!

April ICLW

Hello! Welcome to my blog! My name is Megan and I'm 25 years old. My husband, Eric and I have been married for almost 3 1/2 years. Read how we met! After irregular periods, a few months of trying - I finally gave all natural birth to my daughter, Claire on July 10th 2009. It was one of the best days of my life! Feel free to read my birth story.

My blog was born because of Claire! I wanted to keep my friends and family up to date on our little family of three. Join us on our journey through parenthood. My blog is full of pictures, stories, recipes (Recipe Sunday), baby item reviews, and much more. Our biggest dilemma right now is when should we start trying for baby #2. I have THE itch.

Sit back, take a look and enjoy! I hope this wont be your last time stopping by! Happy ICLW, everyone! Let the commenting begin!!

Wordless Wednesday

Claire being mommy's helper and helping me with her laundry!

THE Itch

I'm getting THE itch.

THE itch for another baby.

Somebody please stop the itching or don't.

I want one. No, I don't. Well, maybe I do, No, not right now.

A year and a half apart is not that bad, right?!

What if it takes awhile, what if it doesn't.

I want a lot of kids, does that make THE itch have more sense?

Everyone around me is pregnant, facebook, family, personal friends...it's crazy and very addicting!

Please, itch - stop itching, I don't know if it's time or not! 

THE itch is driving me insane!

Say Cheese

I hope you enjoyed these pictures of our Bug, Claire. She's an active 9 month old. She is seriously one of the best things that ever happened to me. She makes me life so much better! I love you, Buggy Girl!

I Want The Perfect Town

As Eric and I are starting the process of moving, I sit here and contemplate about where I want to move to - South, West, North. We can move really any where in the Chicagoland area - which means the possibilities are endless. It's exciting to think about but then my OCD kicks in and all I really want is the perfect town. The perfect town to me has great schools, a beautiful, historic downtown area, parks, a well stocked library, great restaurants, and all the necessary everyday stores.

Eric and I have thought about moving South, which is more rural but we can get more house for our money. I think it would be nice, to have land so our kids could have plenty of area to run and play. The downfall; it's far from "the real world" as I say - no Starbucks, Target, a mall within 20 or more miles. I know, I know - that's not what's important, but still. I'm used to driving 3 minutes and getting everywhere I want to go.

Today we were about an hour North of where we live now and let me tell you, I fell in love instantly. It was the perfect little town to me. It was so pretty, so perfect. It was the kind of town I could see myself living in, raising my babies, and being very happy. The downfall - it's far from our parents and friends. GOSH - I just want to scream. It's a lose, lose situation! I want the perfect town AND be closer to my friends and family.

Thankful, I have the type of job that moves with us. For Eric he works at a construction company in Chicago so every two years or so, his location can change. Because of that, we would like to be centralized. No matter where he works, his commute would stay pretty much the same.

In the next couple of weekends, we will be driving around different communities and villages that we are interested in, just to get a feel for each and every one of them. We want to find a town we love and stay there. There will be no transferring our kids from one town and school to the next.This is going to be a big decision, one that we are going to take serious. We will take our time and eventually we will find one that suits us perfectly!

I just hope I can find my perfect town! It's a dream that I hope becomes reality!!

Recipe Sunday

This weeks recipe is Meatball Soup. It's so simple and absolutely scrumptious.

Prep/cook time - 15 mins
Makes 4 servings

What you need:

1.8oz frozen cooked Italian seasoned meatballs
2. A bag of frozen peas or a 15oz can, drained
3. A can (14 1/2oz) of diced tomatoes with basil, garlic, and oregano
4. A can (14 1/2oz) of beef broth
( if you want, you can add noodle or rice)

What you do:

Combine all ingredients in a large saucepan, bring to a boil, reduce heat, simmer uncovered for about 10 minutes or until the meatballs are heated through!

Welcome! Wipe Your Feet and Come On In

Once upon a time, @MomNom, @jennandtonica, @emmie_bee, @heirtoblair, and @ColeEmmett were talking about home decor on Twitter. We thought it would be so great to be able to see each other's homes! A *bunch* of other tweeps joined in, @Alena29 put together a terrific button, and #twitterhometour (or #twitterhouseparty) was born! Feel free to join us - add a link to your home tour post (pictures, video, or both!)at the bottom of my post!!


A little bit about our home. Eric and I bought our house in 2006. It was the perfect little starter home! We bought it from an older, single lady - with, let's say, some very awful interesting decorating taste. We repainted every room, got new carpet, wood, and tile floors. We loved creating our new home together. Our home, like I said, is little - we have a living room, kitchen, dinner/office, 2 bedrooms, a bath room, and a laundry room. We have a wonderful backyard with three big trees and a ton of flowers that come back every year. This house, has been our home for almost 4 years. It has been the first house I came home to the day after I was married, it was the house I brought my first baby girl home too. Our walls are thick of memories we have made in this home but now we are trying to move on. We hope to put it up on the market in the next coming weeks. It is time for us to find something bigger, way bigger!! We need space!

Here are some pictures that make our house, a home! Enjoy!

OUR HOME: (Don't mind the decoration - it's from when I had Claire!)

LIVING ROOM:

KITCHEN:

LAUNDRY ROOM:

CLAIRE'S ROOM:

MASTER BEDROOM:

OFFICE:

FAMILY MEMBERS: