Dear mom:

(I found this letter that I wrote my mom when I was younger and I thought it was still pretty applicable).

I love you mom! I'm looking forward to spending time together once the babe arrives.

Dear baby in my belly:

I guess I was not very clear earlier when I told you that you could feel free to be born anytime now. What I really meant to say was GET OUT, GET OUT, GET OUT!!!... in a very loving way of course. You are already keeping me up all night so I would much rather have you in my arms. I feel like I'm going to explode and we've outgrown most of my maternity clothes. This weekend daddy and I set up your bassinet and installed your car seat so the way I see it you've got to be out of excuses by now. We love you but please just come out!

Love, Mommy

Boston's Obsessions...

Boston has entered the stage of obsessions. These are some things he can't live without right now:

TEDDY BEAR: It is almost as big as he is and he's been insisting on bringing it to bed with him lately. It's so precious because he will just hold on to it for dear life and fall asleep without a peep. They are such good snuggle buddies.

SPATULAS! I'm not sure where this obsession originated but the kid is obsessed with spatulas. He insists on bringing them everywhere and we get a lot of laughs/stares out in public. Maybe he'll be a chef! I'm just glad he hasn't turned them into weapons yet.

MILK: It seems like every kid gets addicted to this stuff. He still can't have cows milk but he loves his soy and will cry for it whenever he's upset. I didn't catch it in the picture but he actually had both bottles in his mouth at the same time until he realized that wasn't working that well.

I wonder if the baby will become his new obsession...

Dear baby in my belly:

Today you're full-term so I just wanted to let you know that you can come out now. I've loved having you inside me these past nine months but we are so anxious to finally meet you and snuggle you in our arms. Also just so you know, if I'm crying when you see me don't worry ... that's what is suposed to happen.

Love, Mommy

Green Smoothies Rock!!

If you've never read the China Study I strongly recommend it. It's the most comprehensive nutritional study ever conducted and it's really eye opening. I read it a few years ago and Mark and I decided we really wanted to convert our diets to one that is very low in animal products. It hasn't been easy though mostly because that wasn't the way we were raised so cooking vegetarian is very foreign to us and frusterating at times.
But we found something new that we are obsessed with and after Mark's first glass he got so excited and exclaimed "I think this might be the key to transforming the way we eat!" Within a few days he said he could already tell a difference and that he is waking up with more energy in the morning (that's a really big deal for him!) Then he told me "You need to blog about this!" Haha. It's true ... we're green smoothie addicts.

So what's in a green smoothie ... any green leafy vegetable you can find. They are the most nutrient dense foods available which means they are low in calories but packed full of nutrition. Also when you eat leafy greens raw they have a lot more health benefits then when they are cooked including beneficial digestive enzymes.

Some of our staples are Kale, Turnip Greens, Collards and Spinach... they are all very mild in flavor and you hardly taste them at all. We also put in cabbage, wheatgrass and sprouts which have a stronger more recognizeable flavor then our staples so we use them more sparingly.

This is how we make our smoothies: I start with 2 cups water and add about 2 Tbsp. flaxseed oil because it's high in Omega 3's and adding some beneficial fats aids in the absorption of nutrients. You can also add a sweetner if you want ... sometimes we use stevia or agave nectar which are both great sweetners.

Then I fill it to the top with leafy greens ... here I'm using turnip greens. Blend until smooth.

Then I fill it to the top again ... this time I'm adding spinach. (I put spinach in all of our smooties and usually combine it with one other green at a time. Spinach is the most mild so it's a great one to start with.) You might want to start with less greens and work your way up. Blend until smooth.

It will now be around the 3 cup line and the more greens you add the more dense the mixture will get. Then we add the fruit. This time I used a banana (another staple for us because it makes it more creamy), about 5 oz. (4-6) frozen strawberies and 3 oz. frozen blueberries which will make it less green. I also sometimes add Kefir (kind of like liquid yogurt and extremely high in probiotics) or yogurt which makes it more creamy.

This usually makes just over 1 liter of smoothie with over 15 servings of raw fruits and vegetables that are packed full of nutrients!! We each drink a liter a day so I make two batches. It will stay good in your fridge for 48 hours or you can freeze it if you want it to last longer.

Even kids love it and Boston loves to watch me make them every morning.

To learn more go here.

Decorating Bug

I don't know if it's because the weather is getting warmer, I'm wanting to spring clean, or being in the nesting phase of pregnancy but I find myself wanting to re-decorate my entire house. It's an itch that I can't scratch and it's driving me crazy!! Here are some of the things I've found recently for the boys' room.

I love this piece of furniture and I think it would be so cute in the boys room with little baskets on it for toy storage, books, etc. The only problem is that I know it would never stay clean.

Boston has a circle obsession and I can just see him going crazy with these on his wall! = )

I want to incorporate the alphabet into his room somehow. Here are a few things I like:

I love both of these rugs for a kids room... I found them both on KSL.I'm not sure how I would use this Latus but probably in our bedroom somewhere.

I thought this would be cool if I took the base off and mounted it to the wall with photos of our ancestors.

Now on to the living room. I love this black leather furniture set I found for sale on KSL. I would get the sofa and loveseat and combine them with our brown leather ottoman and use some accessories to help pull it all together.

Accent pillows!

It's so hard to resist when I find things I love for so cheap.

Cheap Diapers!

I just got a good deal on some diapers, so I wanted to spread the word!

If you go to diapers.com, and are a new customer, you can get $10 off your order (by using the referral promo code: NATA7597), plus a $15 rebate, and free shipping, if you spend $49 or more.

I got over 500 diapers for $47 (after rebate), that's less then 10 cents a diaper!

So, what you do:

1. Go to diapers.com, and pick out any combination of diapers that add up to $49 or more. This will qualify you for free shipping.

2. When you check out, use referral promo code : NATA7597 and you will get $10 off your order. Finalize your order and then ...

3. Go to http://www.diapers.com/helpcenter/parenting.htmand follow instructions to get your $14.97 rebate.

*There's another code on their website that says you can get $5 off your order for being a new customer. You cannot stack this with your referral code, so it's better to use the referral code to get $10 off.