First Baby Shower & Naperville Drive

Last Friday, I had my first baby shower. My coworkers at the Foehr Group threw a joint baby shower for me and my manager. Her due date is 3 days after mine! =) I had a lot of fun at the shower. It was a pot luck and everyone brought in such yummy stuff. I brought mac & cheese, following Ina Garten's recipe, and everyone loved it. Made me smile. =) We played a couple of shower games, which was pretty cute. And we opened up presents which was a lot of fun. I was so thankful and surprised by all of the presents. Baby Khoury definitely has a lot of clothes now. We also got our baby monitor and the baby rocker/seat off our registry - which is pretty awesome. =) I'm excited for Baby Shower 2 that's coming up in a couple of weeks! My parents will here this coming Sunday! Time flies!!

Saturday, we headed to Tim's brothers' houses. We just hung out with them for a little bit. We figured it'd be the last time we see Kareem and Dina before they have their baby girl =) She'll be out and about in March! It was nice to see the kiddies again. It's been awhile =) We got the boys Michigan t-shirts and Gracie a little rain coat. They all looked so cute in 'em. It was also neat to see the progress of Joseph and Katie's house too... lookin' good! I keep saying this, yet, we keep driving to places! haha But I think that drive was our last long drive until the baby is born. hehe

 

33 Weeks

Only 7 more weeks til my due date.. I'm starting to get my hospital bag ready. Just placing some stuff in it every now and then. Our crib is supposed to arrive this Saturday, which I'm really excited about. =) I can really get stuff started at that point. My friend bought us our car seat (amongst other stuff! so nice!) and that has actually arrived at our place already. Those are the 2 major things I really wanted to have in our possession at this point, so I'm pretty comfy right now.


Tomorrow, my coworkers at The Foehr Group are throwing me and my manager a joint baby shower. It's such a sweet gesture - I love those ladies a ton. I'm excited for it. I'm going to bring in Mac & Cheese =) I love their potlucks ..  those ladies can really do a potluck! =) My last day working there is next week. Bittersweet, for sure. I'm going to miss working with everyone there. 

The next baby shower will be the one for me and Tim in a few weeks. I'm excited for that since our families will attend. I'll get to see my niece Lily and nephew Ian again! hehe I'll be at 35 weeks by that point. heh Hopefully, I can lug myself around to enjoy it. hehehe This tummy is getting so big! Tim has been such a sweetie .. he feels bad for my pains. heh =) He's been wonderful at helping me seconds before I get a cramp on my foot or leg! Those are so painful! =P

Michigan Weekend

With weeks left until this baby boy is out and about in this world.. Tim and I decided that we would go to Michigan in February. It'll probably be our last time going sans baby. (Well, I guess we did go with the baby in tummy but details details)

We headed out for Michigan on Thursday evening.. and Tim surprised me with a stay at a Bed & Breakfast in Saugatuck, Michigan. We've never stayed at a B&B before and we've always wanted to - so it was a cute & sweet experience to go during this trip. It was nice to break up the trip/drive this way too! Our room was cute - we had a view of the water which was pretty cool. I think we have Spring Fever, because we really didn't expect the weather to be cold.. but it was pretty cool - especially close to the water. Very windy! We arrived there late so we really didn't do much that night except drive out to Holland for dinner. We got to hang out a little bit in the small downtown the next day - walked around the cute shops. After that, we headed out again to my brother's place. Being prego and driving that much was definitely...  an experience. I tried to do some stretches and whatnot during the drive. Helped a little.. just a little. heh My back is more achy now. And the top part of my ribs on the right side ache a lot.. he tends to kick up there. Ugh. =P It hurts to laugh, sneeze, sniffle.. everything. Oy oy.

We got to my brother's fairly late on Friday night.. and we had time to just go out to dinner at National Coney Island. (I have been craving a hani from National's for months!) It was delicious. =) Then we just headed home and relaxed there.. watched a movie on Netflix. The next morning, Tim and I made a belated birthday breakfast for my brother. Our cousins also came over for breakfast and they even brought cake! It was really nice to hang out with everyone.

After breakfast, Tim and I headed out again.. this time to visit his parents. We hung out there for the rest of the weekend. It was nice to just relax once we drove somewhere. Relax and eat. hah We got to enjoy some "Dough Balls" in Cass City.. a hometown specialty. It was my first time trying them. They were pretty yummy. I'm super sure they're not healthy for you - but details details. =) On Sunday, we headed out to go back home.. and pretty much drove during the beginning of the Snow Storm #2 for the year. It was crazy! We saw so many cars either stuck on the shoulders or hit in an accident. We definitely just took our time and sludge through. We were glad that the weather in Illinois was fine.. it was rainy or just completely dry. Helped the end of the drive a lot.

All in all, Tim and I had a really nice weekend. Time is flying by and pretty soon our super active baby boy will be here. So much to do before he arrives. But we are definitely getting more and more excited! Hopefully the weather gets nicer and nicer... though it's supposed to snow tonight.   Ug. =P

On the balcony of our room

Boeuf Bourguignon - Julia Child

Tim and I have seen Julie and Julia a couple of times and the food from it has definitely made us hungry in those times. Tim got me the Mastering the Art of French Cooking back in Thanksgiving time last year and we still haven't made anything from it. Soo.. this weekend, we set out to get the ingredients for the famous Boeuf Bourguignon dish.


After a busy weekend of cleaning and such, the dish had to wait until last night to be made. The process for this dish takes awhile.. hours. Tim was great. He did most of the prepping and cooking actually. I supervised. hehe It's great cooking with him - we have a lot of fun together. The cooking of the meat takes hours in the oven which is not bad - it's the prepping and cooking of the mushrooms and the onions that also added on to the work. And Tim found a recipe for Garlic and Herb Tomatoes in my Ina Garten cookbook that he also wanted for dinner with the beef - so we made that last night too.

After hours and hours, we finally ate one of the latest dinners we've ever had.. and it was so worth it. The work. The wait. The hype. The movie. The fancy fancy name. Whatever. It was amazing. We couldn't believe we made something so delicious. It was so good that we were excited that we would have the leftovers the next day! The sauce was just.. perfect. The onions and mushrooms in it... seriously delicious. The pieces of bacon you would bite into..yum. I made a batch of rice to go along with dinner. And the tomatoes turned out soo good. Everything about dinner last night was so delicious. Valentines Day turned out pretty nice this year. =)

Dreams..

This is for me to just remember some stuff from my dream I just had a few hours ago.. one that woke me up.. and which is why I'm still awake. I've been using the same resource to look up dream interpretations for a few years and surprisingly, they seem to make sense almost all the time. Especially the ones from dreams that really kept me thinking or kept me awake. Like this recent one..

Salt

To see or taste salt in your dream, represents a new found flare in your waking life. You are experiencing increased worth and a higher sense of zest and vigor. Alternatively, salt symbolizes dependability, truth, and dedication. Also consider the phrase of throwing salt on an open wound. The dream may thus elude to some painful or difficult memory. 

To dream that you are salting meat, symbolizes longevity. There is something that you want to hold on to and preserve. To dream that you are throwing salt over your shoulder, represents protection or luck.

Computer

To see a computer in your dream, symbolizes technology, information, and modern life.  New areas of opportunities are being opened to you. Alternatively, computers represent a lack of individuality and lack of emotions and feelings. Too often, you are just going along with the flow, without voicing your own opinions and views. You may also feel a depreciated sense of superiority.

To dream that your computer has a mind of its own, denotes anxiety about technology and loss of control. You are feeling overwhelmed and that you are at the mercy of another.

To dream that a computer has a virus or has crashed, suggests that something in your life that is out of control. It may parallel something in your life that has come to a crashing end.

30.5 Weeks Self Photo

Less than 10 weeks left..unless he goes over 40 weeks.. and I'm getting myself "ready" - physically, mentally, and emotionally. Heh It's an interesting feeling to know you'll be a "mommy" soon.. We haven't fully decided on his name yet. But I have one in mind that has seem to stick in my head for awhile now.. My tummy is getting bigger and bigger. I wonder how much bigger it'll get, hah! =) Overall, I feel pretty good. I get tired while walking around the grocery store or mall, but other than that, I seem to have a good amount of energy.

After the whole snow storm, the 20s feels mild now. hah Go figure. I went out and about today and I actually didn't stay bundled up like crazy. It was nice to have some sunshine during the day.

I feel like I've been looking at baby stuff like crazy lately. Reading every little detail and reviews. I've learned a lot so far. And I'm sure there will be more to learn when the "On the Job Training" begins, hehe. He's been moving around a lot everyday and it's been really cute & entertaining. I have my next OB appointment on Tuesday and will also start my childbirth class that day too. I wonder how that'll be like. I'll also be going to the OB more often now.

 Here I am in our living room.. that belly is really coming out! =)

Snow Day!

I got to spend the day with Tim today since he had a "Snow Day" from work .. he even went home early yesterday too. It was nice to hang out with him today and do work during the day together. Last night, we did a last minute grocery shopping run - half thinking the pickings would be slim since everyone bought EVERYTHING to prepare for this snow storm. But we got what we needed, so we were fine. The snow really came down though.. definitely significant. Tim loved it - he's been missing the snow. He even shoveled last night to make a pathway from our door. I stayed in, hah, except to get groceries.

Today, Tim did a few errands and I stayed in and just worked at home. We cleaned up a bit too. The whole nesting feeling is hitting both of us. =) We like it. We're cleaning up one room at a time it seems.. feels good. We also ordered our crib - my mother's gift to us. hehe We're really excited about it. I think getting a crib really makes it real. hah I think I'll say that with every major baby purchase. I'll say that when I have the car seat set up in my car probably. haha

It was nice to eat lunch with Tim today. We ate a mishmash of stuff... leftovers from dinner last night, some Arabic bread and labna, and a tuna melt. hah I did put together a quick dessert for us. I toasted up a couple of sweet Hawaiian bread, sliced them up, and placed a scoop of vanilla and chocolate ice cream in it. Yummy. Reminds me of when I was little in the Philippines... hehe