The cat is out of the bag.....FINALLY!

I have been bursting at the seams waiting for the time that I can tell everybody that I am FINALLY pregnant! I am turning the corner into my 2nd trimester and this little babe is due at the end of September. Daddy is doing great and has become even sweeter of a hubby, if that's even possible. My body is changing so fast and doing so many gross things that I never knew it could do (I will spare you)...acupuncture and yoga really help with my bodily stuff. But I feel amazing, the baby is developing perfect, and I am digging the comfort of my new stretchy wardrobe. More pregnancy blogs to come.....I promise!

It sure doesn't FEEL like it

Everything around me is telling me that it's mid-March, except for the fact that it has been nothing but endless rain and a raw 48ish for TOO many months! I had to look twice when I saw the wild daffodils blooming. I could only stand to look for a few seconds before I was too wet and cold to enjoy them. Come on sun...show yourself!

I don't bake

If you know me, then you know that I can cook a wicked meal. I love cooking gourmet food with lots of fresh healthy ingrediants. I rarely use recipes, because I have a decent sense of what flavors work well together. Cooking lets me totally let go of control and just go with my instincts. What I can't do is bake. There is too much exact science to it! You have to use measuring cups, and tools, and specific spoon sizes. However...every once in awhile, I have a hankering for something sweet and I don't feel like going to the store....THIS is my go-to recipe.

My Vegan Chocolate Cake (or cupcakes, if I feel like it). I like my chocolate vegan, because I think chocolate tastes better without all that animal fat. Besides, who wants to lick the bowl when it's all raw eggs and butter? yuck. I have done this recipe with organic products, but the difference in price doesn't seem to satisfy any mental blockage I have about eating cake in the afternoon.

1 1/4 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup warm water
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp distilled white vinegar

I mix all the dry stuff together, then add the wet stuff. Put it in an 8x8 glass pan, Cook it at 350 for 30min and that's it! The creative part is my frosting. Sometimes it's just powdered sugar, sometimes it's nothing, but today is was PB frosting. I don't have a recipe for it, though. I just start mixing PB, powdered sugar, vanilla, and soy milk together until I get something yummy and spreadable. The cake in the oven right now...I'll take a pic when it's all finished.

OK...here it is...or was. Between me, teenagers, and a husband, it didn't last long. I'm no cake boss, but it was super yummy.

The apple doesn't fall far

My father-in-law, Bob, is that 70something yr old guy climbing that tree in Hawaii. His son, (my husband Eric), is that 40something yr old guy climbing that rock in Mexico. I can't keep up with either of them.

Soccer Mom

The high school soccer season starts tomorrow. That means really long days for our teen. Some away games don't get home until close to midnight. It's a grueling schedule, really. So I do my soccer mom duty and make him some power breakfasts he can eat on his drive to school. Eric wanted me to take a picture of them, because he was impressed with the consistency this year. I am getter better at rolling. Go Bruins!

My new faves

A long time ago, I wrote a post about some of my favorite things. Didn't Oprah get this topic started? Here is my latest 2011 version:

Roku for starters. I mean...that little box is amazing. Jace can watch unlimited episodes of Family Guy, I can watch all the weird indie-films I love, and Eric can watch his old school westerns and surf movies.

Real Simple Magazine. This cute magazing always gets my nesting juices going.

Pandora Quick Mix. We downloaded the Pandora player which streams the music much faster and in CD quality. We always have it on. I also have it on my BB to entertain me during long waits at airports or for some hiking mojo.

Go-Gurt. This one is for Jace. What a fantastic teen snack. He eats a box every few days. Since it's frozen, it takes him twice as long to eat it. And since his goal is to consume as much food in 15min as possible, this snack keeps the refridgerator fuller a little longer.

My apple slicer. Love this fruit...but sometimes I just want perfectly symmetrical slices. Oh, I also have the mango slicer, but that gadget leaves behind too much fruit. I am a master as mango slicing anyway.

My 2 can't live without makeup products by Benefit. Confessions of a Concealaholic and Dallas.

My new Sirius Sportster deck for my car. I programmed it with my favorite artists, so it alerts me whenever they are playing on other channels, so I won't miss out. Way cool.

Scunci no-slip hairbands. My mop puts these to the test day in and out. I finally can really get the hair out of my eyes.

My weekend yin/yang yoga class. I look forward to these 2 hrs every week. All my other activities are jealous.

This one is an oldy, but it's one of my all time goodies. My Philosophy skincare products I have used for years! On a Clear Day keeps my adult-o-acne down and Everyday Hope keeps me looking in my early 30s.

I realize that this list is rather superficial and uninteresting to most. That's why they are MY favorite things!

It came back.

I returned yesterday from a sunshiney, 85 degree week in Miami. I got a nice little tan, too. I was expecting to come back to the pretty spring days that we've been getting. Nope. This morning I woke up to 10 degrees. It's back. Winter. Oh joy.

Well, since I locked in the house to stay warm. There's no better time to do our taxes and plan our next vacation.