John's back in Cairo on business, but only for three days and without Selen. She had to stay in Rotterdam and work :( I miss her! I apparently grew since earlier in January when John saw me last night, I got a "You're HUGE!" which I love to hear!! I am big! Annabelle sticks out so much I sometimes wonder if I need to put my hand under my belly to support her when I walk. She is heavier than I expected which is causing me lots of back pain:( Tylenol and laying on my side usually does the trick.
We should be getting her chair for her nursery today! Her room will be complete, minus the stuff my in-laws and parents are bringing over. I will make it a point to post pics as soon as Homecenter delivers the chair!
It's very chilly in our house because it's been rainy, overcast and cold (we still live in the desert, right?) The tile on the floors that keep the house relatively cool in the summer are making it seem like we live in a refrigerator. Burrr! I am thankful for house shoes and cozy robes!
This week we are meeting with a pediatrician. The phone conversation went something like this:
Jordan: We would like to make an appointment to speak to the pediatrician.
Receptionist: Did you get a boy?
Jordan: Not yet, my wife is still pregnant and we are having a...
Receptionist: Your boy will not be at the appointment?
Jordan: .....No
Receptionist: Okay, see you Wednesday after 7pm.
This will be fun.
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Foodie
I love to cook! I've recently had more time on my hands to think about and prepare menus each week and stick to a schedule where I cook every other night and eat leftovers in between. Jordan and I are making an effort to go to the Souk (market) a couple times a week to pick up some fresh produce so we can have plenty of salads and snacks that are healthy for the baby and for us!
We don't have a weight loss goal in mind (my goal is to gain weight for the baby), but we are trying to eat relatively healthy and still have a little something sweet for dessert each night. Last week, we had shrimp Pad Thai with Asian coleslaw and banana spring rolls with chocolate dipping sauce, broiled Parmesan bassa with chive mashed potatoes and blueberry salad, and shrimp linguine with red cabbage salad just to name a few.
Here are some yummy, but sort of guilty pleasure recipes that we also enjoyed:
On the weekends, Jordan and I like to have breakfast for dinner because we are lazy:) Pancakes are a must! Unfortunately, we ran out of the maple syrup this weekend and so I whipped up a blueberry syrup instead.
Blueberry Syrup
1/2 c sugar
1 tbsp cornstarch
1/3 c water
2 c frozen blueberries
1. Pour ingredients into a medium saucepan and bring to a boil.
2. Serve hot over pancakes or french toast.
Snack that I had to have at 4:30 in the morning!
Caramel Popcorn
Make the popcorn (I do this on the stove)
1 C brown sugar
1/2 C of light corn syrup
1/2 C butter
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
1. Melt brown sugar, corn syrup, and butter on med heat and stir for 5 minutes at a boil constantly. It will thicken slightly.
2. Set aside from heat and add the baking soda(it bubbles up), vanilla extract, and salt and stir.
3. Pour over popcorn and mix well
I love rice dishes! Yum! This one made for a great pairing with Lemon Pepper Salmon, Crisp Salad with a red onion vinaigrette, and some sauteed green beans.
Curried Rice Pilaf
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 c green onions
1/4 c butter
1 1/2 c uncooked rice
1 tsp curry powder
3 c vegetable broth
1 tsp salt
1/2 c golden raisins
1/2 c toasted, chopped almonds
1. In a large skillet with a lid, melt butter, stir in garlic and onions until tender.
2. Stir in rice and curry powder and saute until slightly browned
3. Pour broth and salt over rice, stir and cover for 35 minutes or until rice is tender.
4. Remove from heat and stir in raisins and almonds.
I haven't made our menu for next week, but I think I'm leaning towards a red meat dish or a roast and possibly some Middle Eastern sides. Any suggestions?!
We don't have a weight loss goal in mind (my goal is to gain weight for the baby), but we are trying to eat relatively healthy and still have a little something sweet for dessert each night. Last week, we had shrimp Pad Thai with Asian coleslaw and banana spring rolls with chocolate dipping sauce, broiled Parmesan bassa with chive mashed potatoes and blueberry salad, and shrimp linguine with red cabbage salad just to name a few.
Here are some yummy, but sort of guilty pleasure recipes that we also enjoyed:
On the weekends, Jordan and I like to have breakfast for dinner because we are lazy:) Pancakes are a must! Unfortunately, we ran out of the maple syrup this weekend and so I whipped up a blueberry syrup instead.
Blueberry Syrup
1/2 c sugar
1 tbsp cornstarch
1/3 c water
2 c frozen blueberries
1. Pour ingredients into a medium saucepan and bring to a boil.
2. Serve hot over pancakes or french toast.
Snack that I had to have at 4:30 in the morning!
Caramel Popcorn
Make the popcorn (I do this on the stove)
1 C brown sugar
1/2 C of light corn syrup
1/2 C butter
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
1. Melt brown sugar, corn syrup, and butter on med heat and stir for 5 minutes at a boil constantly. It will thicken slightly.
2. Set aside from heat and add the baking soda(it bubbles up), vanilla extract, and salt and stir.
3. Pour over popcorn and mix well
I love rice dishes! Yum! This one made for a great pairing with Lemon Pepper Salmon, Crisp Salad with a red onion vinaigrette, and some sauteed green beans.
Curried Rice Pilaf
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 c green onions
1/4 c butter
1 1/2 c uncooked rice
1 tsp curry powder
3 c vegetable broth
1 tsp salt
1/2 c golden raisins
1/2 c toasted, chopped almonds
1. In a large skillet with a lid, melt butter, stir in garlic and onions until tender.
2. Stir in rice and curry powder and saute until slightly browned
3. Pour broth and salt over rice, stir and cover for 35 minutes or until rice is tender.
4. Remove from heat and stir in raisins and almonds.
I haven't made our menu for next week, but I think I'm leaning towards a red meat dish or a roast and possibly some Middle Eastern sides. Any suggestions?!
Friday, January 14, 2011
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Top Ten Predictions
My first post of the new year: Top Ten Predictions for the Stone Family!
10. None of my predictions will really happen since I stink at predicting things! It's more like wishful thinking:)!
9. Baby Annabelle will ace the Babywise technique and Jordan and I will be able to sleep through the night by 7-9 weeks.
8. Kickboxing will become my favorite post-baby exersise. Do they have a Wii version? Hmmmm.....
7. My parents and in-laws will experience what it is like to travel with as much luggage as I do. Sorry guys!
6. I will convince Jordan to go skiing in Beirut this winter.
5. Annabelle will be born with a head full of hair. Not that it matters if she is or not, but Jordan and I both had lots of baby fuzz.
4. Jordan will surprise me with an Anthro gift card for my birthday..hint, hint!
3. I will cry like a baby when we go back to Florida this summer. First Watch Cafe, the palm trees, the thunder storms, Coral Ridge Church, the beach...yup!
2. My sister will have the trip of a lifetime when she visits Cairo! She will wonder how it is that a clean freak like myself has lived in the Big Dirty for 2 years!
1. I will be pregnant with our second child.
I can't wait to see Jordan's reaction to #1 when he reads this!
10. None of my predictions will really happen since I stink at predicting things! It's more like wishful thinking:)!
9. Baby Annabelle will ace the Babywise technique and Jordan and I will be able to sleep through the night by 7-9 weeks.
8. Kickboxing will become my favorite post-baby exersise. Do they have a Wii version? Hmmmm.....
7. My parents and in-laws will experience what it is like to travel with as much luggage as I do. Sorry guys!
6. I will convince Jordan to go skiing in Beirut this winter.
5. Annabelle will be born with a head full of hair. Not that it matters if she is or not, but Jordan and I both had lots of baby fuzz.
4. Jordan will surprise me with an Anthro gift card for my birthday..hint, hint!
3. I will cry like a baby when we go back to Florida this summer. First Watch Cafe, the palm trees, the thunder storms, Coral Ridge Church, the beach...yup!
2. My sister will have the trip of a lifetime when she visits Cairo! She will wonder how it is that a clean freak like myself has lived in the Big Dirty for 2 years!
1. I will be pregnant with our second child.
I can't wait to see Jordan's reaction to #1 when he reads this!
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Christmas!
Christmas is almost here and it's exciting to think that this will be the last Christmas we spend as just the two of us. We are spending our time in Sharm with two other couples relaxing on the beach and having some quiet time. I'll be reading and catching up on all of Tullian's podcasts and Jordan will be practice his photography, so I'm sure I'll be posting some pics soon after!
Things in the Stone household have been busy as usual. Jordan's working a lot and helping out at school and around the house. Starting my 3rd trimester, my energy level has been dropping, but I'm hopeful that it will get back up to speed closer to my due date. I do have to be careful and not overdue it. My last doctor appointment was kind of scary. Annabelle's heart rate was too fast and didn't seem to be going back down. We ended up going to the hospital for a trace reading and her heart rate was back in the normal range. It was probably stress related, so thanks to doctor's orders, I'm going to enjoy some sleeping in and lounging around time.
We've got lots of guests coming into town! Entertaining always gives me an extra bounce in my step and gives me an excuse to cook everything in my recipe box:) In January, Danielle and her husband, and Ronnie and Jeremy will be here, in February, Jordan's parents will come, in March, my parents will visit, and in April, my sister will make her first visit to Cairo! Yay! Annabelle's excited too! She looks forward to meeting her two sets of grandparents and her aunt!
My goal this holiday season is to master the art of sewing on a machine. I have managed to break two needles, severely knot the bobbin twice, and use a whole roll of thread on one project. I've got a manual and I've been trying to follow it to the letter, but even after my sad attempts to sew, I just sit there and think, can it really be that hard or am I the factor that is messing up a perfectly well designed machine and it's potential! To be continued...
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from the Stones!
Things in the Stone household have been busy as usual. Jordan's working a lot and helping out at school and around the house. Starting my 3rd trimester, my energy level has been dropping, but I'm hopeful that it will get back up to speed closer to my due date. I do have to be careful and not overdue it. My last doctor appointment was kind of scary. Annabelle's heart rate was too fast and didn't seem to be going back down. We ended up going to the hospital for a trace reading and her heart rate was back in the normal range. It was probably stress related, so thanks to doctor's orders, I'm going to enjoy some sleeping in and lounging around time.
We've got lots of guests coming into town! Entertaining always gives me an extra bounce in my step and gives me an excuse to cook everything in my recipe box:) In January, Danielle and her husband, and Ronnie and Jeremy will be here, in February, Jordan's parents will come, in March, my parents will visit, and in April, my sister will make her first visit to Cairo! Yay! Annabelle's excited too! She looks forward to meeting her two sets of grandparents and her aunt!
My goal this holiday season is to master the art of sewing on a machine. I have managed to break two needles, severely knot the bobbin twice, and use a whole roll of thread on one project. I've got a manual and I've been trying to follow it to the letter, but even after my sad attempts to sew, I just sit there and think, can it really be that hard or am I the factor that is messing up a perfectly well designed machine and it's potential! To be continued...
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from the Stones!
Friday, November 26, 2010
10 things I'm thankful for:
10. Baking/Eating this
It's an oven pancake that I whip up the night before and just pop in the oven in the morning before work. Yum!
9. Jordan got me a Singer sewing maching!!! My mother-in law taught me how to get started! I am so thankful for her! She is a skilled quilter just like all the wonderful ladies in Jordan's family:)
8. Learning how to crochet...the right way:) Nanny taught me to crochet, but she was left handed, so I learned it backwards! I appreciate the internet videos and have now mastered the double crochet.
7. Mini-break on the weekend in beautiful Beirut and driving with the windows down in the mountains with hubby.
We are moving to Beirut! To get ready for our move, we did some "research". We went grocery shopping, looked at some furniture stores, and drove around some nice neighborhoods to get a feel for our surroundings. Jordan navigated around the city pretty well.
6. Having two wonderful baby showers in the states, reconnecting with friends and family, and having a mini-girls night with my three ladies and baby Molly, enjoying the drive from Texas to Oklahoma listening to Taylor Swift, having wonderful parents and in-laws that I didn't want to say goodbye to, and doing it all in 5 days:)
When Beth (my beautiful sister-in law) and I touched bellies, our baby girls kicked back at the same time!! It was incredible!
5. All our bags of baby gear made it back to Cairo:) On our flight from Cairo to the US, the airport people made me sit in a wheelchair and I got in front of everyone in line and lifted onto the plane in a ramp all because my sweet husband asked for help with carrying my bags!!:)
4. Having wonderful friends to share Thanksgiving with! We brought back some cooking staples from the states and had lots of traditional food that hit the spot!
Two pregnant ladies in the kitchen:)
15 people, turkey, lots of laughs:)
3. Knowing Annabelle is growing strong each and every day! Currently, I am 26 weeks (two more weeks away until my third trimester!)
2. Jordan, my sweet husband! His laugh fills my heart! I also love his awful attempt to make pancakes. It's nice to know I'm needed!!
1. Saved by grace!
It's an oven pancake that I whip up the night before and just pop in the oven in the morning before work. Yum!
9. Jordan got me a Singer sewing maching!!! My mother-in law taught me how to get started! I am so thankful for her! She is a skilled quilter just like all the wonderful ladies in Jordan's family:)
8. Learning how to crochet...the right way:) Nanny taught me to crochet, but she was left handed, so I learned it backwards! I appreciate the internet videos and have now mastered the double crochet.
7. Mini-break on the weekend in beautiful Beirut and driving with the windows down in the mountains with hubby.
We are moving to Beirut! To get ready for our move, we did some "research". We went grocery shopping, looked at some furniture stores, and drove around some nice neighborhoods to get a feel for our surroundings. Jordan navigated around the city pretty well.
6. Having two wonderful baby showers in the states, reconnecting with friends and family, and having a mini-girls night with my three ladies and baby Molly, enjoying the drive from Texas to Oklahoma listening to Taylor Swift, having wonderful parents and in-laws that I didn't want to say goodbye to, and doing it all in 5 days:)
When Beth (my beautiful sister-in law) and I touched bellies, our baby girls kicked back at the same time!! It was incredible!
5. All our bags of baby gear made it back to Cairo:) On our flight from Cairo to the US, the airport people made me sit in a wheelchair and I got in front of everyone in line and lifted onto the plane in a ramp all because my sweet husband asked for help with carrying my bags!!:)
4. Having wonderful friends to share Thanksgiving with! We brought back some cooking staples from the states and had lots of traditional food that hit the spot!
Two pregnant ladies in the kitchen:)
15 people, turkey, lots of laughs:)
3. Knowing Annabelle is growing strong each and every day! Currently, I am 26 weeks (two more weeks away until my third trimester!)
2. Jordan, my sweet husband! His laugh fills my heart! I also love his awful attempt to make pancakes. It's nice to know I'm needed!!
1. Saved by grace!
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Really?!
So, these are the kind of lame messages I get on fb from random Egyptian men. This one gave Jordan and I a good laugh! Enjoy!
hello kristina ,
i hope i am not bothering u with my messages , i saw your profile here by chance and i thought it would be nice to get to know u if u will be interested
i dont know if i can have such a chance to hear from u or not , but i hope it will happen , and i guess we are all here for a reason , which is mainly knowing people whom we can share either feelings or ideas or what ever together , and it such a good thing that we are able to do this on the web , as u can feel free to express your feelings without being shy of any thing , and in the same time u feel safe and relax , and its like a big gallery of people , u can choose whom to contact or to reply for with any obligation , and even if u choose to contact someone and then u found out that he is not same like u thought or not the right person to be in contact with, then u can shut him down any time u want and without any obligation .
i hope that u got my message , i dont want to make it long for u , but i hope i will get a reply soon and we can get to know each other,u can also add me to your m s n if u would witch is a much easier way to communicate or if u have a better way of communication please let me know about it :) ehab.sh2@hotmail.com , and please if u dont want me to contact you again please let me know .
waiting for your reply
ehab
hello kristina ,
i hope i am not bothering u with my messages , i saw your profile here by chance and i thought it would be nice to get to know u if u will be interested
i dont know if i can have such a chance to hear from u or not , but i hope it will happen , and i guess we are all here for a reason , which is mainly knowing people whom we can share either feelings or ideas or what ever together , and it such a good thing that we are able to do this on the web , as u can feel free to express your feelings without being shy of any thing , and in the same time u feel safe and relax , and its like a big gallery of people , u can choose whom to contact or to reply for with any obligation , and even if u choose to contact someone and then u found out that he is not same like u thought or not the right person to be in contact with, then u can shut him down any time u want and without any obligation .
i hope that u got my message , i dont want to make it long for u , but i hope i will get a reply soon and we can get to know each other,u can also add me to your m s n if u would witch is a much easier way to communicate or if u have a better way of communication please let me know about it :) ehab.sh2@hotmail.com , and please if u dont want me to contact you again please let me know .
waiting for your reply
ehab
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