We had a family date night on Friday and decided to brave the Mall of America. We always try to get there at least once during the holidays to see all the decorations. Other than the rotunda, it wasn't as busy as I thought it would be a week before Christmas. We ate at Johnny Rockets (Parker had Sbarro pizza.) It was a great burger! I probably ate a few more fries than I should have, but knew we'd be walking the mall, which would help with my blood sugar.
We mostly enjoy window shopping and don't usually buy much at the mall. Jimmy was thoroughly enjoying a massage chair at Brookstone while Parker and I took a break.
We had to check out the Disney store, which was chock full of Star Wars stuff! Jimmy even found his new suitcase! I just hope it big enough for our movie snacks when we finally get out to see Episode 7.
Minnesota Children's Museum is currently being remodeled, so that have a satellite location at the mall. My friend Daisy had shared that you get an extra 4 months of membership by signing up now. This will allow all new members to the opportunity to check out the new exhibits opening Spring 2017. I have been toying with the idea for a while and thought this would be a great chance. We will have access to both locations, which will be great for our mall visits as well. Other than Legoland, they don't really have a play area like most of the others malls do. It will be nice to have a place for Parker to run off some energy. I am excited to have a year for baby girl to explore too!
My mom and I unintentionally started a tradition last year with a baking marathon! It was so much fun we had to do it again. We made a lot of the same ones and a couple new ones too!
Parker and I got to my parents about 8:30 Sunday. Parker had a quick dip in the hot tub with my parents while I made breakfast. By 9:45 we had the mixers going!
Parker was a bit more curious this year, but mainly just observed.
The cookie thief (Parker) struck again, but this time he took a bite out of dough! Neither of us saw him do it, but I turned around to find this!
We had a great time making all the goodies and even more fun giving a bunch of them away today! I was pretty exhausted by the end of the day (even with a little nap in the afternoon!) I guess that is what happened when you are growing a human! Are you doing any holiday baking? Any suggestions for next years event? I hope you are enjoying the holiday season as much as I am!
Haha, you knew that already. We will get to the gender in a just a moment, but I wanted to give a brief overview of the ultrasound we had yesterday. The anatomy scan can be a bit nerve-wracking since it is often the first time you get to see anything that looks like a real baby. I have not anything that I am sure is movement, so I was very excited to see a moving, grooving, breathing, heart-beating baby in there!
I learned that I have an anterior placenta again. This means it is in the front of my tummy. This often makes it harder to feel those early movements since there is a big sack of fluid in the way. I didn't feel much with Parker until 22 weeks, so I am expecting something similar this time. That was my favorite part the first time around and I can't wait for it this time. Everything else on the scan looks great. We got to see baby's hear pumping and he/she was hiccuping, which was cute! Baby wasn't in a good position for 3D, but we will be back in about a month for another scan. I will also be having a fetal echocardiogram to get a better look at babies heart because of the diabetes and high blood pressure.
Here are a couple pictures from the ultrasound.
Ok, ok, you came to find out if baby is a boy or a girl... We didn't do anything special last time and got a few requests to do something fun. We were originally planning to go down to the hospital so Jimmy's dad could be a part of it, but he wasn't feeling up for visitors so we did it at our house. I made pink and blue ornaments and had a co-worker open the envelope we got at the ultrasound and wrap the matching ornament. Here is a picture of all the ornaments.
You can either sit through the short video below, or scroll a little further to see.
If you didn't want to wait...
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It's a GIRL! The grandmas were both pretty excited! You should watch the video just to see that!
We are pretty excited (and a little nervous) all at the same time! It will be the same and new all rolled in to one! I guess it is time to get some pink...and bows...and glitter...and tulle, definitely need some tulle. Oh boy, my crafty brain is going 100 MPH now!
Today marks 19 weeks! The first couple months seemed to drag on, but now time is flying by! I can't believe we are already almost half-way there! Here is my latest bump/pudge picture.
I am still feeling great and I think that I am starting to feel some movement. It is very sporadic at this time, but I don't think it can be anything else. I can't wait for it to become more frequent!
We have our anatomy scan tomorrow and are very excited to see this little one and find out if it's a boy or girl. Here are how some of the old wives tales predict it. I have left out any that don't lean towards a specific gender.
Heart rate: It was 105 at my dating ultrasound, but was 150-160 at my last two appointments. Heart rate over 140 is supposed to indicate: GIRL.
Nausea: Just like with Parker, I haven't had any nausea. This points to: BOY
Leg hair: My leg hair seems to be growing more than normal. This indicates higher testosterone levels and: BOY.
Husband's siblings: He has only sisters, which can mean that the X sperm are better swimmers, therefore: GIRL.
Temperature of feet: My feet have been feeling colder since becoming pregnant. This could be because winter is coming or could indicate: BOY.
Food Cravings: I am not sure if I have been craving meat and cheese more because I can eat more (low carb) or because I am really craving it. This points to: BOY.
Chinese gender calendar: There are many variations of this calendar. After going through the first page of Google results (not including ones I had to provide and email for) it was tied at 3-3. I did the first one on page two and GIRL took the lead.
BOY just barely edges out GIRL, but we will find out for sure soon!
I mentioned personalized light sabers in my last post about Parker's birthday party. I found the light sticks at Dollar Tree. They only has pink and white, so I decided to make my own red ones. Toy selection tends to rotate pretty often at Dollar tree, so you make not be able to find them at a later day, but this could work with many different applications.
Supplies:
Light Stick
Tissue Paper
Mod Podge
Paint or Foam brush
Scissors
Exacto-knife (optional)
I cut a piece of tissue paper slightly larger than needed, then coated the stick with a layer of Mod Podge. I gently wrapped the stick with the paper, then trimmed it with the exacto-knife. You could do a more precise cut on the tissue paper in advance if you don't want to trim later.
I applied another coat of Mod Podge to the tissue paper and let them dry.
I also wanted to add a personalized touch. I used my silhouette to cut the kids' names in vinyl, then used sticky transfer paper to apply them to the light saber handles.
All of the kids were pretty excited to see their names on the light sabers!
We had Parker's Star Wars themed birthday party yesterday. We kept it smaller this year, just inviting his friends from ECFE and family. I used Pixelmator (cheap version of PhotoShop for Mac) to make his invitation and printed them as 5x7 pictures.
We did a couple of short activities. The first was "Build a Droid." I used my silhouette to cut out R2-D2 bodies, parts, and other shapes. The kids got to glue on the shapes in any way they wanted. I think we got a great variety of droids!
We also did dark side bowling. I printed off pictures of Darth Vader and Stormtroopers and attached them to a kids bowling set. They had a great time trying to knock down all the pins!
The kids had fun just playing until it was time for lunch.
I went totally on-theme with the food as well! It worked out great since these are pretty easy things to prep and cook for a crowd.
I used Betty Crocker's Seven Layer Dip recipe, which is beans and taco seasoning, cream cheese and chiles, salsa, cheese and veggies. The Yoda Soda was a hit too! I have done this punch in a few different variations. They all have a base of ginger ale and pineapple juice, then you scoop in sherbet to fit your needs. I have used pink for a baby shower and used green this time for the signature Yoda color!
I also made some additional treats. I have a friend with cut and stamp cookie cutters that I borrowed to make "Light and Dark Side Cookies." I used a basic sugar cookie recipe, them made a thin glaze with milk, powdered sugar, and food coloring. I lightly painted it on with a basting brush and they turned out great! I also made some chocolate covered pretzels to look like trees from Endor (home of the Ewoks.)
All the food was a hit, even with the kids!
I am probably most proud of his Forest of Endor cake. I make one larger and one smaller square cake, then layered them on an angle. A big batch of buttercream frosting was dyed it in two colors of green for a variegated look. I used the same chocolate covered pretzels to make trees and positioned some to look like fallen logs. I also used some small pretzels to make little ferns. I just needed to add Parker's Star Wars figures to complete the cake!
He loved when everyone started singing to him! He still doesn't quite understand blowing out the candles, but dad was there to help.
Our friends and family were so generous with their gifts. He got a few sets of PJs, several great books and a bunch of new toys that he is already loving!
I also make favor bags that I forgot to take pictures of. They each got a couple of cookies, a bouncy ball, temporary tattoos, fruit snacks, and personalized light sabers. You can see the light sabers in the picture below and can find the tutorial here.
Parker's cousins, Jayden and Emma, got in the spirit with their Star Wars shirts as well!
We were all ready for nap once the party was over. Parker fells asleep almost instantly and I was not too far behind.
We finished the day with a quick trip out to Grandpa and Nana's house and the boys took a dip in the hot tub. It was a great finish to a fun-filled day. Happy, happy birthday to my big 4-year old!
