One year ago today...

Last year on December 30th, Brandon and I did our last IUI fertility treatment. It was our 6th attempt and we decided this would be our last. It was just too expensive and emotionally draining and the dr. told us we should move onto something else if this didn't work. It was by far the most painful procedure out of the 6 and I was hopeful that if we 'gave up', this time would be successful. I found out on January 12th that this time had failed also. One of the worst moments in my life. It was a start of thinking a different way - we looked up information on adoption even though that path never felt right to me. I had given up hope on ever becoming pregnant. Little did I know that 17 days later, little Preston would start growing. Oh man, - it still brings me to tears thinking of all we went through and where we are now.

Here's some Christmas pictures of our little miracle man:

^Santa Baby^

^Love this face!^

^"Stop kissing me!!!"^

2 months old!!

Preston turned 2 months old yesterday - that sounds so much older than 8 weeks. He's such a cutie pie and doesn't look like a newborn anymore. He recently found his tongue which is so funny to watch. He's slept through the night several times now and that's such a treat for mom and dad!!

Bad mommy!!!

In a desperate attempt to get my sweet little Preston to stop crying and to go to sleep, I plopped him down on the bed, tightly wrapped a blanket around his wiggly arms, propped pillows around him so he wouldn't fall over, stuffed a pacifier in his mouth (he hates them!) and turned the radio on and started signing loudly - and badly! - while I folded laundry. He immediately quieted down and while sucking on the pacifier, fell asleep. I know this was wrong of me, but it worked and I may be onto something. Bad mommy!!!

Preston is 1 month old!

My sweet baby is 1 month old today! We have a dr. appointment on Tuesday to have his weight checked and to make sure he's still healthy and doing well. We sure love the new addition to our family ♥

Pictures of Preston

Here's pictures of our new love:

Me, Preston and Dr. Weary

Snuggle time

1st Halloween

Preston Robert King has arrived!

Our little pumpkin is finally here. He was born via c-section and we're all doing great and loving our new family of 3. I'm the happiest I've ever been and still can't believe I've been blessed with such a wonderful baby and an amazing husband.

Name: Preston Robert King
Date: October 27, 2010
Time: 4:03pm
Weight: 7 pounds, 8 ounces
Length: 20 inches

Our little pumpkin is almost here!!!!!

I was induced this morning at 11am - we're at the hospital waiting for labor to start so we can meet our little pumpkin. Tomorrow will be the big day :)

Still cookin' the pumpkin...

I'm now officially 1 week past my due date. I feel great but I haven't felt any signs of labor. I'm getting very anxious to meet our baby! We have an ultrasound, a non-stress test and a dr. appointment tomorrow morning to make sure our little buddy is doing ok and is just really comfy where he's at. I'm feeling him move a lot so that's a good thing!

Here's some recent pictures of my baby belly:

Brandon painted the pumpkin on my belly with Halloween paint. The little guy was moving like crazy the whole time - it was really fun!

Baby shower

My friend Evangeline threw me a baby shower this weekend. She's a great hostess and we played fun games and ate yummy food. One of the activities was painting onesies with fabric paint and stencils - I've never done this, but it was really fun! Our little guy now has a bunch of personalized clothes to wear that were made with love by my friends. This is some of the gang with the finished products: Me, Mama, Tiffany, Katy.

^Big monkey balloon bouquet^

^Big Belly at 37 weeks^

I'm now 38 weeks pregnant. I'm due 2 weeks from today....14 days.....336 hours. It's getting so real and I'm getting so excited about meeting my belly buddy. Keep cookin' little guy! ♥

Baby Shower #1

Both of my pregnant friends had their babies over Labor Day weekend. One girl, one boy. Everyone is doing well and I can't wait to see both babies. We had a baby shower together in August - lots of good food and fun. I have always wanted to make a baby carriage out of a watermelon and this was the perfect occasion. I used a full sized melon and filled it with melon balls, blueberries, strawberries and grapes. I used a white nectarine for the baby head and drew on a face with a sharpie and then wrapped it in a lettuce leaf blanket. It was pretty easy to carve and super fun to make!

^ Me, Amber and Gracie ^

The 3 baby bellies

3D/4D pictures of our little pumpkin

^ Pouty face ^

^Daddy's mouth^


^'Baby taco' - love those little toes!^




My hubby's birthday was this past Saturday and I surprised him with a 3D/4D ultrasound session. We had talked about doing this and I thought it would make a perfect gift. For the first half of the session, our little guy had his arm covering his face and we couldn't see much - little stinker!! After some gentle probing from daddy, he finally moved his arm and we got to see his whole face for the first time. He's definitely got his daddy's mouth!! He opened his eyes a few times and yawned twice (so cute!). I had 2 glasses of orange juice before our appointment to make him move around but our little pumpkin was too comfy and slept almost the whole time. He's in a Frank Breech position with his arms and legs fully extended in front of his face. I sure hope he turns around over the next 7 weeks! Our package came with a CD with 47 pictures and a DVD of our whole session so we can watch it over and over. It was a great bonding experience and I'm so glad we did this. 48 days to go :)

Chubby cheeks and my big belly

We had a 3D ultrasound on August 13th and got a good, clear picture of our pumpkin's little face. His cheeks are getting chubby and he's looking so much more like an actual baby! He was sleeping and sucking on his wrist - SO CUTE!!!

Here's a picture of my big belly at 31 weeks. I'm finally starting to feel pregnant and I'm loving it! The baby is kicking and rolling around a lot and I find myself rubbing my belly all the time. It's a wonderful feeling and I feel great!

30 weeks pregnant

Here's the latest picture of our lil' pumpkin taken last month. This was the first time we got to see his little face in 3D - love that little squishy mouth and button nose. He's still bent in half with his legs and arms in front of his face, so this was the best picture we could get. Our next ultrasound is this Friday the 13th. Can't wait to see him again :)

I had a rough few weeks of severe back and hip pain. I went to physical therapy a few times and now I'm back to feeling normal. Thank goodness! I can handle a lot of pain, but I was miserable.

Garden fresh produce

I planted my garden late (June 1st) and have been waiting and waiting for some fresh produce. I went out to water the other day and lookie what I found!! I planted some different veggies this year and this picture shows two of them - purple green beans (which turn green when cooked) and a Fooled You pepper. It tastes like a jalapeno, but without the heat. I ended up stuffing it with herb cream cheese and eating it raw - it was really good! The tomato was amazing - nothing like growing it yourself and eating it right after it's picked. The zucchini and green beans were really good too. This was our dinner along with steamed Yukon gold potatoes and a mango-nectarine that I found at the grocery store. It was like a small, juicy peach with a hint of mango. Loved it! I can't wait for the rest of my garden to ripen :)

Strange storm clouds

I live in Colorado. It rarely rains here. Sometimes it gets cloudy and looks like it will rain, but then the sun comes out and the clouds blow away. It's all a big tease. Yesterday was no different. I was outside and it started sprinkling and then POURING rain. We got a good soaking for more than an hour. It was very exciting. Watching the news last night they said this was a storm of 'great proportions' - which I guess meant because we got more than a few drops. There were flash flood warnings all over and a tornado warning to the East. There was even reports of a car floating down a main street. We got some more light rain off and on throughout the night. Wonderful sleeping weather with the windows open :)

This morning I woke up to strange storm clouds over the mountains. There was a big white cloud bank at the foothills and a big dark cloud hanging above. Between the 2 was beautiful blue sky and the tops of the mountain peaks were barely visible. Hope everyone has a great day whether it's cloudy or sunny, rainy or dry.

Birthday Monkey and Posole Soup

I love monkeys - they make me smile. I found this digital freebie on Dustin Pike's blog http://dustinpike.blogspot.com/ and had to have it. His images have such a cute personality. I colored the monkey and vines with Copic markers, added some brown grosgrain ribbon and cuttlebugged the bottom layer.

I made Posole Soup for dinner the other night and it was YUMMY!!! I love mexican food and I love soup. I've had Posole at restaurants, but I've never made it at home. I think the recipe came from a Family Circle magazine. I altered the recipe slightly since I don't eat meat - changes are in parenthesis. It was a slow cooker recipe, but I cooked it on the stove and it worked out fine.

Chicken Posole
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 1/4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken cut into 1-inch pieces (I used Quorn Chick'n Tenders)
2 cans (15 ounce each) white hominy, drained and rinsed
1 medium-size onion, chopped
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. dried red pepper flakes
2 large chicken flavored bouillon cubes (I used vegetarian chicken broth powder)
4 cups water
1 can (14.5 ounce) petite cut diced tomatoes with jalapenos, drained
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
Lime slices
*I also added a small can of roasted green chilies, drained

Combine all ingredients except lime slices and cook on HIGH for 3 hours or LOW for 5 hours. Serve in bowls with lime on the side.

(I sauteed the garlic and onion in a big pot until soft and then added the rest of the ingredients and simmered, covered, for about 15 minutes. The lime juice really added a nice tang.)

Stamps: Dustin Pike digital image, Hero Arts message
Accessories: Grosgrain ribbon, cuttlebug, Copic Markers
Paper: SU! Handsome hunter, chocolate chip, white

Fella and his Bella

My cousin got married over the weekend and I needed to make him a card. I didn't go to the wedding as it was in California. I found this Bella image that someone had sent me. It's called 'Fella and his Bella'. The Bella looks like the bride (especially the hair!) so I used it even though it's technically not a "wedding image". Close enough, right? The card matches their wedding colors - hunter green, lime green and chocolate brown. I made the card mostly white and just added a touch of the colors so it didn't look too gaudy.

I'm now 26 weeks pregnant and things are starting to change! I've had a very smooth pregnancy so far but these past 2 weeks have been a challenge. I injured my lower back several years ago and the pain has come back a few times since then. It's a sharp, shooting pain that feels like I'm being electrocuted and it HURTS! It's not just a backache, it's much more. This pain came back 2 weeks ago and I was miserable. I've been getting a monthly prenatal massage and the therapist thinks it might be sciatica although the pain doesn't shoot down my leg, it goes up my back. I finally went to the dr. and they recommended Vicodin and muscle relaxers and offered to give me a referral to physical therapy. I'm too scared to take the Vicodin, but I've been taking the muscle relaxers and Tylenol and it's helped a little. I hate taking anything while I'm pregnant, but I'm miserable without anything. Some days I'll start to feel better and then the pain comes back. I've been putting moist heat on it several times a day and that feels pretty good. I think I may just have to wait this out. Another symptom that's shown up recently is both of my hands are numb and tingly all the time. It's worse in the mornings when I wake up. I've read that this is caused by pregnancy and is called carpel tunnel syndrome. The swelling in the body causes the nerves in the hands to be pinched and go numb. Never heard of that before! Other than those 2 minor setbacks, I'm loving being pregnant and everything is going well :)

Stamps: Stamping Bella 'Fella and his Bella'
Accessories: Ribbon, Cuttlebug, brads, SU word window punch, nestabilities, Copic markers
Paper: SU green galore, handsome hunter, chocolate chip, white

My belly is growing!!

This picture was taken at 24 weeks.

We've been taking a picture of my belly every 4 weeks since I was 16 weeks. I'm now 25 weeks along and I'm amazed at how much bigger I'm getting! I don't really feel any different, but the picture sure shows how much I'm growing. I'm trying to wear the same outfit in each picture so it shows my progress - so far, the button still buttons on the pants, but they are getting tighter! :)

I've started feeling the lil' pumpkin kicking. It's the best experience and I'm loving it. 2 more weeks until our next ultrasound. 102 days until my due date - LOL!!!

Our Gift

I saw this Willow Tree statue at a Hallmark store and thought it would be the perfect anniversary gift for my hubby. We were going out of town for the weekend, but I wanted to get him a little something to open on Sunday morning. This figurine is called 'Our Gift' and it's my first Willow Tree. I love how they are both holding the baby and each other. Our baby is definitely a gift that we have been wanting for a long time.

I also made him this card. It's pretty simple - the 2 birds and heart are a rub-on (I LOVE RUB-ONS!). I cut out the main image with my nestabilities die, added a mat and a few brads and stamped the message.

Stamps: $1 stamp from Michael's (Kolette Hall)

Accessories: Rub-on from Luxe, Nestabilities die, brads

Paper: SU! Real Red, white

♥ 12th Wedding Anniversary ♥

This past Sunday was our 12th wedding anniversary. I love being married to my best friend. I wish we could spend every second of every day with each other. He promised me this would be possible if we win the lottery :) Darn money always gets in the way.

We went out of town for a few days to celebrate. We stayed in Idaho Springs, CO which is about a 2 hour drive into the mountains. The weather was beautiful and we had a great time. We stayed at the Indian Springs Resort which has a big indoor hot springs pool that feels fabulous to soak in. It isn't too hot so me and the lil' pumpkin were able to enjoy it. We spent A LOT of time in the pool! We've been there before and we plan to go back next year for our anniversary with our little guy. We highly recommend this place: http://indianhotsprings.com// We ate lots of good food, relaxed, enjoyed our time together and took some scenic drives. One was to the top of Mt. Evans which has the highest paved road in North America. It's paved, but drops off on the sides with no guardrails. Luckily Brandon is a good driver :) The summit is 14,130 feet and it was only 33* at the top. It was a clear day and the drive was beautiful. We saw a herd of billy goats with 4 teeny-tiny babies. Soooo cute!!

Happy Anniversary to my wonderful husband and thanks for such a fun weekend ♥


Road up to Mt. Evans

Mama and baby billy goat - the park ranger said the baby was only a few weeks old.
Me and Brandon at the summit - it was windy, can you tell?!

Echo Lake

Waterfall and Waterwheel in Idaho Springs

23 week ultrasound in 3-D!

We had our 23 week ultrasound yesterday. Our little pumpkin looks great - he weighs 1 pound, 4oz and is breech right now. He has both arms and both legs curled up by his face. Silly guy! The technician switched the ultrasound over to 3-D and we got to see him in a whole new way. It was so neat to watch. It was hard to get a good picture of his face because all of his limbs are in the way :) He better not be camera shy when he arrives because I LOVE to take pictures and he'll have his picture taken a lot!

My belly is measuring 25cm and things are going well. I can't wait to watch my belly get bigger and bigger. This is the best experience of my life ♥

Baby legs - baby knees, baby feets and baby toes


Profile - his feet are above his forehead and you can see the shadow of his legs at the top of the picture.

Birthday Dragon

I stumbled upon the Dustin Pike blog awhile ago. He draws the cutest images and even gives away digital freebies from time to time. Most of the cards I make are for birthdays so this was a free image I grabbed immediately and knew I'd use over and over. I colored the whole thing with Copic Markers and popped up his hat and muzzle (is that what it's called on a dragon?!). I used crystal effects on the balloon to make it shiny and covered the cake with stickles. I cut the base of this card a little different than usual - I cut off about 2 inches on the right so the card opens closer to the middle. I just love this designer paper by DCWV - I'm really into stars right now :)


I'm 23 weeks pregnant now and we have our next ultrasound tomorrow! We invited my mama to come with us to experience seeing the pumpkin in action. I'll be sharing pictures on Friday :)

Stamps - Dustin Pike
Accessories - Copic Markers, Stickles, crystal effects, grosgrain ribbon, MS scallop circle punch, Nestabilities, pop-dots, 'Wish' rub-on
Paper - DCWV, SU!

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day to all the dad's. This is a very special day for us since it's the first Father's Day since we became pregnant. It's always been a difficult day for us, but this year we have a reason to celebrate!! Brandon talks to my belly everyday and I just know he's going to be the best daddy! I'm so looking forward to our future and our changing roles as parents. I loved making this Father's Day card. The image is called 'Miracle from Above' from H & M Stamps. It was the perfect image because we are constantly amazed at our little miracle. And I have a strong feeling we'll be staring at the baby a lot ♥ On the inside I printed "Happy 1st Pre-Father, Father's Day."

We're going to the park today to celebrate Springspree - a festival that's held every summer. He hasn't gotten to go for a few years so we're excited to go. Afterwards, we're heading over to my mama's house for dinner. The weather is beautiful today so it should be a lot of fun.

Time to wake daddy :)

Stamps: Miracle from Above (H & M Stamps)

Paper: DCWV, SU!

Accessories: Cuttlebug, Nestabilities, oval punch, copic markers, grograin ribbon, brads, pop-dots

Ped Egg

I admit it. I am an infomercial junkie. I want everything I see - even if it looks too good to be true or sounds ridiculous. I'm usually pretty good about not buying everything I see...usually. I saw the commercial for the Ped Egg awhile ago and was intrigued by the "cheese grater for feet". I take care of my feet and get regular pedicures, but I wanted something I could use at home that would really work. I bought my Ped Egg at Bed Bath and Beyond and used a 20% off coupon - my total cost was $7 and some change. I came home and immediately tried it out. I WAS IN LOVE ♥ This product really works and it was easy and painless. My heels do not look dry or cracked and I was amazed at the amount of dead skin it removed. The design of the Egg is supposed to catch all of the shavings in the lid - I found this to be a bit faulty because you have to keep it upside down while using and that's not always easy. It does catch most of it though. I just use it over the bathtub and problem solved. I give this product 5 stars.

I also bought the Heel Tastic Foot Therapy to go with my Egg. It works pretty well even though I can't stand the smell. I do love the deodorant-style applicator though.

Other infomercial products I've bought:

Sobakowa Pillow (love)
Sham-Wow (pretty good)
Nads Hair Remover (no likey!)
Tap Light (too dim)
Tan Perfect (worked ok)
Dual-Action Cleanse (eh)
Dryer Balls (love)
Debbie Meyers Green Bags (love)
Topsy Tail (loved this when I had long hair)
Oxiclean (not impressed)
Furminator (didn't work on my kitties)

(all these products can be found here: http://www.asseenontv.com/)

Father's Day/Grandpa's Day

This is my dad's last year as just a 'dad' before he becomes a first time Grandpa. He's super excited about his new status so I decided to make him a Father's Day/Grandpa's Day gift. I was looking for a cute picture frame that said something with Grandpa, but couldn't find one I liked. I found a plain frame at Michael's and decided to get crafty instead. He likes homemade stuff and I thought he'd appreciate something unique. I covered the frame in designer paper, spray painted the letters white, and added a few sparkly foam stars and a matching ribbon. I sealed the whole thing with Mod Podge so it won't rip or tear. I used clear acetate to cover the window and added a picture from our last ultrasound.

Someone had sent me the goofy old man image and I thought he looked like a perfect Grandpa. I colored him with Copic Markers and added Crystal Effects to his glasses. I added designer paper and foam stars to match the picture frame.

I found the cute onesie at JCPenney's. My dad's coming to visit us shortly after the baby is born and I think he'll enjoy holding him in this outfit :)



Stamps: Old Man (unknown)
Accessories: Cuttlebug, foam stars, wooden letters, spray paint, mod podge, ribbon, Copics
Paper: SU, DCWV designer paper

Wedding card

We recently went to a wedding for one of my husband's co-workers. She had just graduated college 6 days earlier and her hubby-to-be had graduated from the Air Force Academy the night before. It was a beautiful outdoor wedding and the weather was perfect. Her colors were turquoise, ivory and black. I made her this matching card to go with the gift we bought. It was very fun to make :)

Stamps: Whipper Snapper, Stampin' Up!
Accessories: Cuttlebug, Stickles, ribbon, Copic markers
Paper: SU Black, SU ivory and turquoise paper from the wedding invitation

IT'S A BOY!!!!!!

We found out last Thursday that our lil' pumpkin is a BOY!! What an exciting day. I started crying (happy tears!) the minute we walked in the ultrasound room and didn't stop until about 5 hours later. The suspense, the excitement, the amazement, the relief that everything was ok - all of it was overwhelming in a wonderful way! It's so much fun to know we are going to have a BOY! The shopping has already begun :) He looks great and is weighing in at 11 ounces and is 10 inches long. I'm still waiting to feel him move which the dr. said should be in the next week or so. Our next ultrasound is on June 24th - can't wait to see him again!

His little foot and toes - I LOVE baby feets.



Profile - can't wait to kiss those lips! ♥



Arms covering the face - this was our favorite picture.