36 weeks

Reading

Ya'll I wish I could read more. Between children, husband, cleaning, sewing, church, cooking, etc. I cannot find the time to read. This year one of my "resolutions" was to blog about the books I've read. It's kind of sad that it is August and I've only read a handful of books. Regardless of how pathetic, here is the sad little list of the books I've read since my last book review:

When Greg travels (which thankfully isn't very often these days) he often picks up books at the USO. We're pretty sure that's where this one came from. I picked it up on a whim, it's not riveting, it's not THAT great but it's not bad. If you are looking for an easy mindless summer read, this one is for you.

On a deeper note, I read "Ruth: A Portrait" by Patricia Cornwell.

This book was for a book club. I love reading about Mrs. Graham and this book was no exception. Patricia Cornwell is best known for her crime books but she wrote this book because she loved Ruth and was a friend of the family. The book has a fictional air to it but it does give yet another fascinating glimpse into the life of Ruth. Highly recommend!

I was flipping through Family Circle the other day and found a list of books they recommended for summer reading. I loathe going to the library to pick out books so I reserved their suggestions and I have been slowly coming up on the waiting list to pick them up. The first one was "The Actor and the Housewife" by Shannon Hale.

Ya'll it is SO bad. I couldn't even finish it. Maybe I would have liked it had I been able to finish it but the story line was just so STUPID and unbelievable and quite frankly very uncomfortable. I finally just had to stop. The worst part, the silly thing is now overdue which is very unlike me...ohhhh it makes me mad just thinking about paying a fine for this book!

The last non-fiction book I attempted to read this summer was "The Nine Day Queen of England: Lady Jane Gray" by Faith Cook. This book was also for book club.

Now it could just be me and my spacey pregnant brain but this was another one I just couldn't do. I am so not into this time period in history, mix that with the fact that we were on vacation and let's just say it's being put in my give away pile. I'm sure she is probably a fascinating person, but I needed cliff notes and a graph of characters to really care. Can ya'll tell I'm getting a little grumpy in my preggo state...

Any good books from you guys lately?

Joel's Party

I know we're lame.  We have a lot of family only birthday parties and this year was no exception.  I was just too tired to think about having people over.  Joel enjoyed his "party" none the less!

And now two reasons I love Joel at two:

1. He is the cutest thing you ever saw.  Look at that sweet face.  We are all totally smitten' by him.  His world is in for a rude awakening when Miss Abby gets here but for now he's loving being the center of attention.
2. I also LOVE his baby talk/confusion.  We've always taught our kids to sign.  Recently Joel has had a hard time saying thank you so Greg re-taught him the sign for thank-you.  Now when he says thank you he blows you a kiss and says BYE-BYE!  It's so cute.  Last night at dinner he very clearly told us he wanted to pray.  He set down his sippy cup and crossed his hands and bowed his head.  Oh he is just sooo cute!

Happy Birthday AGAIN my sweet Joel.  

**In other Spencer baby randomness, I totally copied my girlfriend Nancy and posted an online baby pool, click on the orange link and make a guess as to when Miss Abby will be here.  Top prize is bragging rights!**

EXPOSED

Last Tuesday I took Sam to have his front top teeth "exposed".  In October 2006, Sam was playing on the playground at school and somehow fell into the ladder of the jungle gym.  The fall took out his top four teeth roots and all.  The dentist warned me that it would probably be years before we saw his adult teeth, and she wasn't kidding!  

The last couple of visits she (the dentist) had been telling me that she would probably need to do a procedure to expose his top teeth because his gums had become very hard and calloused over the last almost three years.  In May she told me that she was ready for me to schedule the procedure which I did for August 4th.  I really debated about when to tell Sam, I finally decided the morning of was plenty of time for my little worrier.  He took the news rather well, especially after I mentioned the promise of milk shakes and a trip to the grocery to pick up "soft" foods for afterwards.  

That morning we got to the dentist right at 12:00 and they called us right back.  Twenty-five minutes, laughing gas, Novocain, and a scalpel later we were walking out the door with one pearly white already showing through.  I couldn't believe how fast it was over and I also couldn't believe how much she had to saw through those poor gums to get to his tooth.  The dentist basically took two almond shaped pieces of gum out of his mouth so that his teeth could fall into place.  So far we've had great success with the left tooth, the right tooth has been more reluctant.  I'm hoping we see it VERY soon.

Here are some before and after pics and one from today:

BEFORE

AFTER

TODAY (I don't know if you can tell, but braces are in our future)

On the subject of exposure...I wanted to EXPOSE some of the great sellers I have been finding on ETSY.

Ya'll I love etsy!  I have found some great things for our house.  I got a great silhouette kind of like this one for Abby's room:

It's by sarah + abraham.  Click here to go to their store.

I also got this for Miss Abby's Room:

It's by Megity's Handmade.  Click HERE to shop her etsy store.  I'm not much for clutter but I think these tassels are SO STINKIN' CUTE!!

I also got this for Miss Abby herself:

baby not included...but isn't that the most ADORABLE hat you ever saw.  Oh I can't wait for her to get here and to put it on her little head!  This little flapper hat was from Portland Beanie Company.  Click HERE to shop their store.

From Roll and Tumble Press I got these great prints for our bathroom and for our kitchen:

To shop their store click HERE.

I'm not even mentioning the great fabric I've purchased as well as the lady who is making me an infant car seat cover!  I'm in love with ETSY!  Do you have anyone etsy stores you recommend?

Sugar and Spice

I had a wonderful shower today.  So much fun and so girly!  Thanks to my girlfriend Nancy for putting it all together and for taking lots of great pictures.  

The super cute party favors with a tea set!

Super cute pink baby buggy sugar cubes!

Opening lots of pink gifts!

All the ladies!

Looking rather "swell"  26 more days for Nancy, 46 more for me!  If we both make it to our due dates!  

Thanks again to everyone who came, for all of the wonderful gifts and to Nancy for putting it on!  Tomorrow's Nancy's big shower day, can't wait to reciprocate some love!

Get your kids to eat their veggies (and your hubby too!)

Growing up my Mom always made us eat HORRIBLE things...brussel sprouts, kale, spinach, if it was green and horrible we ate it!  Thanks Mom!  No, I mean it!  To this day my Mom still eats vegetables like they are going out of style.  I don't completely share her love but I do try to give my children lots of well rounded fruit and vegetables.

Last night I made one of my favorite stews (courtesy of Mom's kitchen):

3 tablespoons olive oil or vegetable oil
1 lb. smoked sausage
1 large onion
6 to 8 large cloves garlic
4 large potatoes
1 large bunch kale (buy the pre-washed/chopped kind from the grocery)
2 quarts water, or substitute some chicken stock
2 16-ounce cans Great Northern Beans (don't bother draining)
Salt and lots of black pepper

Heat olive oil in a wide, deep (the deepest you have) soup pot over medium heat. Chop smoked sausage and add to pan.

Dice onion and add it to pan. Mince garlic and add it. Cook them together, stirring often, until they soften, about 5 minutes.  

Meanwhile, dice potatoes.  Add potatoes and kale to the pot.  (The kale is going to look like it is going to take over the entire pot, don't worry it cooks down)  Add water (or chicken broth). Increase heat to high, and bring stew to a boil. Reduce heat, simmer 20 to 25 minutes or until potatoes are very soft. (As it was cooking I picked out any of the kale stems, there was a lot in this particular batch.  If it looks like it will be hard to chew throw it out)  Use a potato masher or fork to roughly mash the potatoes and thicken the broth (I don't even bother with this step). Add beans and heat through. Season with salt and pepper.

Serve with bread or our favorite CORN BREAD!! I always add a sprinkle of parmesan cheese...SO YUMMY! 

Serves 4 to 6.

We enjoyed ours with the corn bread and fresh strawberries.  Very colorful and very yummy.  The best part...you really can't taste the kale, so you are sneaking in veggies without anyone being the wiser!

Off to an OB appointment...go eat some veggies today!

Happy Birthday Joel!

You are such a joy and blessing!  Happy 2nd Birthday, birthday boy!!