Baby Bump.

http://kitschyphotography.wordpress.com/2010/12/30/baby-bump/

Top Two Tuesday! Top Two Favorite Christmas Memories.

It's that time again for Top Two with Tay over at The Undomestic Momma.

It's been a while since I posted, and I feel just sick abput it. Just trying to get through work, crazy lately, and not having a computer. I haven't picked up my camera in two months. Just stuck in a slump, I guess.  No computer, too cold to go outside, and our house is not quite picture friendly.  Considering just going back to a point and shoot and giving it up.  Ahh well. But it's Christmas, and things are tight around here, but Merry none the less.  Hoping Nik gets a little excited for Christmas, though I still don't think she has grasped the concept yet.

I have so many wonderful memories of Christmas as a child, young adult, adult, and then as a fiance, a wife, and a mother: Christmas Eve at my Nana's every year since I was born, followed by Church, reading Christmas stories, Christmas with my Grandma and Aunt and Uncle Christmas Day, Christmas in Arizonia with the hubs and his family, Christmas in Chicago at my Brother/Sister-in-laws when my sis-in-law was on bedrest.

The #1 memory I have at Christmastime is:

1. Baking Christmas Cookies with my Mom

My mom and I on Christmas Eve would make Iced Sugar Cookies and Peanut Butter Balls.  I can still remember the flour, the bakers cloth, the rolling pin, the cookie cutters, picking the icing and sprinkels for each cookie, dipping the peanut Butter in Chocolate, and opening the Christmas Tins we would store them in. We would usually be listening to Christmas music, with "It's a Wonderful Life" or "The Bishops Wife" on in the background.  And then, leaving the cookies for Santa, with carrots for Rudolph, milk, and a letter for Santa.  I still put cookies out for Santa, always have.  Nik and I just made Peanut Butter Balls Sunday, and we are going to make Iced Sugar Christmas Cookies Christmas Eve.  Yeah!  Can't wait!  I wear my Christmas Apron, and she has a little snowman apron that is too cute!

and

2.

The Windows at Marshall Fields/Having lunch at The Walnut Room in Chicago with my Mom and Brothers
My mom dragged us every year around Christmas to see the windows at Marshall Fields in Chicago, and to have lunch around the Big Christmas Tree in the Walnut Room.  We took the train up usually, and we went no matter what the weather. Rain, snow, freezing temperatures. She told us we'd look back and remember this, and be glad she dargged us, and she was right. Thankfully Macy's is continuing the Tradition, and we were able to take Nik last year, though we have not made it there with her yet this year. Hopefuly, after Christmas:)

 and
I have to mention...

 Christmas Mornings

The magic of Christmas mornings was what I loved best. The magic and joy of running down the stairs to see if Santa had come and put something under the tree and filled our stockings.  Stockings are my FAVORITE thing!  I am huge into stockings!  It was less about what was under the tree, and more about the magic of believing in Santa.  I have many memories of my brother sneaking into my room early, early Christmas morning to wake me up, and we snuck downstairs together to see if we could catch Santa.  We were always caught!  My world was crushed when a little girl in my class told me about Santa. I still choose to believe, and every year, I still wake up, and run to the tree, wondering if there will be a mysterious gift under the tree...hoping...

There is nothing like the Magic of Christmas!

Merry Christmas y'all!



Weekend Update and Coldstone Creamery WINNER!

Hey Y'all!

Happy Monday!  Brrr, what a cold weekend we had!  I won tickets to Uncle Kracker on a local radio station, but the concert was about an hour away, and we happen to have a small ice storm and got a late start, so hubs said that we wouldn't be able to attend;(.  I was dissapointed, but hubs DID take me to a Chicago Bears Game Sunday for business, and the weather was so bad, we got to stay the night in Chicago over night. Yeah!!  I had to be at work at 8am today, but we were able to have a nice dinner after the game at a little Italian Restaurant called the Italian Village that was TO DIE FOR!  We had the cutest little booth/table, nestled in this little cove like corner, all to ourselves.  IT was so private and intimate.  They had fabulous bread/olive oil, great food, and dessert!

This Picture pretty much sums up the whole game for me. Tom Brady and the Partiots outdefeated us in any and every way imagineable.  If anyone of you saw, the Bears game was a massacre and it was brutally cold, windy and snowy, with -5 windshield.  But, we were able to go with two other young couples who the hubs does businness with and we had a nice lunch at Kroll's Bar near Soldier Field, had fun at the game bundled up, with only our eyes showing, drinks afterwards, and then huns and I seperated to go to dinner, and then back to the hotel, where I took a very long hot shower.

My parents watched Nik over the weekend.  She had the onset of a cold.cough, and it escalated over the weekend, so they stated they would watch her today, so hopefully, she gets to feeling a little better.  My dad said it looks like our dog Diesel got into something too while we were gone, and now, we think he's sick top. What a mess.  Hopefully, he'll be okay.

It was my brothers birthday Sunday, and my brother, sister-in-law, and nieces came down from Chciago to visit. Happy Birthday Troy, you're a GREAT UNCLE, and Nikolina just adores you!  We were sorry we missed my family, but we're looking forward to seeing them on Christmas!  Apparently Nik had a blast with my 6 year old niece and doted on my 9 month old niece.  Savannah was pulling Nik around the house on her bottom with a silkie and Nikolina was cracking up hysterically, and she kept running over to my 9 month old niece wanting to kiss and hold baby Isabella over and over.

My point and shoot is broken, so we only took some pics with a throw away camera. So I don't have any to share of the game, not that I could share them anyway without going to my parents to upload them, ha.  But, I could probably show you a pic of a couple people wraqpped up like Mummies with only their eyes exposed, and you wouldn't know the difference...

But, you wouldn't know that this wasn't us, unless I told you, would you???

I have no idea who these people are, found it online.
But this is pretty much what everybody looked like walking around, ha!

But, I hope you all had a GREAT WEEKEND, and I do have a WINNER for the $20 GC Coldstone Creamery Giveaway. Wish I could give one to everyone. I went to Random.Org, and you have to pay a fee and be a member to get the official drawing pic/info. But, I assigned a number to all of you based off what order your comments were in, if you participated, and assigned two numbers to you if you chose a flavor, etc.  I think drawing names from a hat is more fun, and would have had Nik do it, but this seemed more fair.

For generic giveaway results. The top number in the Random sequence is used.

Which was  #8.

I tried to attach the link below, showing that #8 was the first number in the random sequence, but the link just kept changing the number sequence. 

CONGRATULATIONS Allison of Life With Lydia. 

Isn't the pic of her little one THE CUTEST EVER!!  WHAT A DOLL!

Email me at lindsay.berner@gmail.com with your address to claim your prize!
Hopefully, I will have more Giveaways for you. I had so much fun with this one, I think I am going to try and have another one soon!

Happy Monday Y'all!

Thankful Thursdays.

I am Thankful for so many things...everyday I am ever mindful of how many things I am thankful for in my life.  There is always something: a person, a word, a glance, a picture, an event, news, an article, a book, that reminds me how blessed I am in my life, and I am always grateful for those little things that keep me feeling alive and aware of how blessed I am in my life. 

I think the only thing that gets me through my work day, without Nik, is how thankful I am to see her for the couple hours I do at the end of the day and the 1/2 hour in the morning.  I try and think how blessed I am to have her in the first place-that we are surviving, with a roof over our head, and food on our table, with our faith, our family, and our health.  If I can keep those things in focus, and how grateful I am, I can get handle how desperately I miss her and want to be home with her during the day.

But, there are always those little things that I am grateful for too. Sometimes they're silly, nearly insignificant, mostly unnecessary, but none the less, things that I am thankful for in my life. That make my days a little better, a little easier, a little more meaningful, a little more enjoyable.  Thought I'd share.

Obviously, there's her..

and him...

All my family and friends....

and

Romance Christmas Novels!

This is my guilty pleasure at Christmas!  I Love these Christmas themed Romance Novels, with the multiple authors, filled with short stories of finding love at Christmas time.  I read them every year, and it always gets me in the spirit for Christmas.

My dad found my old gameboy and was letting Nikolina play with it. I confiscated it, put some new batteries in, blew on the games a little, and what do yo u know?  It still works.  And, no I am not ashamed to be walking around with this old school gameboy I had when I was 7.  I love my Super Mario Land and Tetris.

Now onto the Food.

I am thankful for...

Starbucks Mocha Frapuccinos, no whip.  These are so crazy expensive. I can't even afford to talk about them. But I have been having at least one a week for the past couple months. I can't afford to, but they are like heaven to me. I LOVE THEM.  I think it's winter that makes me want to fatten up.

And, if I'm not having them all the time, I always get the whip. I don't understand people whi don't get whip and chocolate shavings. Might as well go for broke.

At Christmastime I Like the Peppermint Mocha Frapuccinos too, though I think this is a Latte.

Haagen Dazs Chocolate Chocolate Chip Ice Cream. Just saying it aloud sounds fattening, and it is. It so is.  But it is hands down the absolute best Ice Cream Ever!  And CCC, is my favorite. My mom and I used to watch old Black and White Movies and share a pint of Haagen Dazs CCC Ice Cream. Two Spoons, Cary Grant, Katherine Hepburn, and my mom and I.  I think they actually put Haagen Dazs Ice Cream on a list of the 10 worst foods for you, you can eat, yep, it's that good. 

Salads. I have been loving salads lately. Eating one a day. Yes, I add cheese, and fatty dressing. But still feels and tastes good to eat them. I can't stand fat free dressing. Just no good. I have been eating spinach leaves, with craisins, roasted almond chips, Greuere Cheese, and Ranch Dressing. Fabulous.

I LOVE Subway's Turkey Sandwhiches.  The way I have always gotten them my whole life is Wheat bread, Turkey, American cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, green peppers, black olives, and mustard.  I can still remember walking into the store as a child, and the smell that hits you when you first walk in of fresh baked bread.  Still feel that same feeling everytime I walk in there.

Panera's Turkey Bacon Bravo. If you have a Panera near you.  Go there. Go there now. Seriously, stop reading, and grab your purse, your children, your dog, your clothes, whatever...Drive there, get in line, and order a Turkey Baco Bravo, just the way it comes.  It is the absolute most fabulous sandwhich!  To die for. Tastes so healthy and so filling, without leaving you overfilled.  FABULOUS!  Are you still here? Go!

I'm not usually a big candy person. I used to be when I was younger, twizzlers, sugared gummy worms, sour candy all that. But, then I started getting headaches, jittery, and hot flashes, if I ate it, and too much, so I stopped cold.  But lately, I have been having a wierd craving for candy.  Lifesavers, etc.  Sometimes I satisfy it, sometimes not, but it always sounds so good.  Bananna laffy taffy is my fav. Had a couple of these last month and they were yummy.

 and

                                                                                

Pink and Red Starbursts. I only like the Red and Pink. Especially the pink. Although the watermelon is really good too. I had a package of all pinks the other day.  These were always a fab growing up, along with Mambas.

AND

Don't forget about The Cold Stone Creamery Giveaway!  Last day to enter is tomorrow.  I will be using Random.Org to pick the winner, and will probably post the winner Monday.

To enter go here, GIVEAWAY!!

Pregnancy: Week 13

Pregnancy: Week 13

DATE: December 9, 2010

How far along: 13 Weeks

                                                       Total Weight Gained: Unknown
                                                              Current Weight: 122

  How big is baby? My Little Peach!  Mmm...a Peach sounds good!

Your fetus is forming teeth and vocal cords... savor this, their non-functional phase. Baby is approaching normal proportions, with a head now only one third the size of the body. Intestines are in the process of moving from the umbilical cord to baby's tummy.

Maternity Clothes: No.

Sleep: Good.

Best Moment of the Week:
Surprise moment of the Week:

Movement:Sometimes, I think I feel little flutters, sudden movements, I'm sure it's you! (though I'm no supposed to feel anything yet!)

Food Craving:Starbucks Mocha Frapuccinos, no whip. This habit will break me, ha!

Haggeen Daaz Chocolate Chocolate Chip Ice Cream. Yummy!

Milk

Food Aversions: Soda. Caffeine.

Morning Sickness: No. Sometimes I feel a little nauseated if I don't eat enough or get dehydrated, or take my pre-natal on an empty stomach.  Usually fleeting. Sometimes, my tummy gets a little upset after eating.

Gender: Unknown

Symptoms: Puffy Belly!  Little nesting kicking in.  Want house clean!  Vacuumed/Swiffered twice in one day
What I miss: Flat Tummy, ha!  Picking Up Nikolina without hesitiation, and carrying her around on my hip.

What I'm looking forward to: Feeling the Baby Kick, usually around 20 weeks!  Decoraing the Nursery once I'm off restrictions. And, hoping that I am no longer at risk for Placenta Previa so I can go back to carrying/holding Nikolina and cleaning/preparing the Nursery.

Sing-A-Ma-Jigs.

http://www.sing-a-ma-jigs-singing-toys.com/

So, over the Summer, Nik and I were at the Toy Store, and while in line waiting to check out, Nik saw a Display of these Sing-A-Ma-Jigs, and she was reaching and pointing to see one. It was the first time I had ever seen them, and Nik was enthralled with it. It was kind of creepy and strange to me, but she LOVED it!  I let her hold it, and she wouldn't let it go. We ended up having to purchase it because she wouldn't let us leave without it.  I figured I would just confiscate it during nap, and take it back at a later date. She loved it, but it was $11 or $13 dollars, and that was way more than we could spend on this bizzare toy!

I showed it to the hubs, and he thought it was very cool but also very strange.  I wrapped it in the bag, and hid it.  She forgot. It later ended up in her closet till I could return it. The other day when I was cleaning Nik's closet and putting away clothes that didn't fit anymore (which I am happy to say is all done. The only clothes hanging in her closet now are a few dresses from when she was little that I didn't want to fold, a couple for now, and a couple dresses/coats for the future), I found it. At this point, I figured, I would just keep it, and put it in her stocking. I had no idea that these things were the HIT ITEM for Christmas!  How cool!

They remind me of Alvin and the Chimpmunks and sound like them too!  They all sound a little different.  They also harmonize when you put them together, which I though was pretty cool.  I hope Nik is excited to find it in her stocking, though I'm sure I am going to regret giving her this thing as I can still hear it now in my head months later.  It may have to mysteriously disappear and reappear from time to time just to give Mom a break, ha!

HO, HO, NO, HO!

This a picture a Nik from last year with the Santa at Macy's in Chicago. I would love to take Nik back here to see Santa. They really have a fabulous imitation of the North Pole and Santa's Magical Workshop set up within the old Marshall Fields Building. Then, you are led back by an Elf through a winding corridor to a secret room with a fireplace, stockings, a Christmas Tree, and Santa in a Big Chair. It's really fabulous!  My sister-in-law met us there last year.  You are alone with Santa, and you can take your own pictures, or purchase one as well. But, I think we waited for two hours on a Weekday, so I can't imagine the wait on a Weekend!  They should probably just make appointments.  My workplace has Santa Sittings, but you haev to make an appointment, and the Cut off was ridiculously early, like the end of October, and who's thinking about that at that time?  So, we missed it.

Also, as you can see. Nikolina is not crazy about Santa. It was her first time meeting him here. I gave her to him, and first she just looked at him (which the photographer snapped a shot of, a really adorable picture), and everything seemed alright, then all of a sudden she burst out into these tears. Obviously, we didn't torture her, and we took her back.  We felt bad making her wait all that time, and then she obviously was not comfortable.  We though about purchasing the one of her crying instead because it was kinda of indicitive of the moment, but we deicided on the one of them looking at each other, which is really sweet! 

So, this year, I was bound to let her LOVE Santa. I have been reading her books about Santa.  Putting Santas up in the House, Santa ornaments, Saanta movies. We taught her to say "Ho, Ho, Ho." And she seemed to love him. She gets excited when we read the books and wants to skip to the last page where Santa is, whenver she sees the Santa in the house, she walks past, and says "Ho, Ho, Ho."  So, a few weeks ago, I thought she was ready. Our town was having free carriage rides with Santa, and we headed over there to meet the Big Guy. We only had to wait through two families, and then we were next. Nik was very excited to see the horsee, and ride on the buggy and we talked about Santa. When our turn came, I tried to lift her up onto the carriage, and she was not having it. She started crying and wiggling away, trying to escape.  I thoought she would settle down, so we went ahead on, and we tried to introduce her to Santa, and Santa talked with her, but she was not thrilled. Another girl and her mom shared the ride with us as well, but that did not help. She eventually did calm down, but she was definently afraid of Santa, and maybe the whole thing.

I don't know what it is with Santa and children. He's so jolly, what's the deal?  Kids are always screaming. Maybe it's because he's a stranger, and you;re throwing them on his lap, I don't know. I think I may try once more this year with a local Santa, since we may not get up to Chicago again this year!  But, it's so expensive! Crazy expensive.  Maybe children have to be older to really understand, grasp, and love Santa. When I was little, my mom said, I would always cry around people with white hair, so maybe that's what it is for her too. Who knows.  She's loving the Christmas Carols at Church, so I guess that's all that matters. I hope soon, she will grom to LOVE Santa.

Anyone else's child(ren) the same way with Santa? 

This was the magical Fairy/Princess at the Restaurant in Macys. She and Nikolina became fast friends. She sprinkled Fairy Dust on her, and sang to her. It was so cute, and we had dinner around the "Traditional Marshall Fields Tree."  I would love to take her back there, now that she's a year older. I think she'd love it!

And, a pic of Nik with Daddy at my Brother and Sisiter-in-Law's house on Christmas last year.  Wish I had gotten one of the two of us, but you know how Holidays go...

Hope ya'll have a Great Weekend!