Spinach-Banana Muffins for the Picky Eater

Let me preface this post, my Boys are usually great at eating all types of food, including vegetables. Much to the dismay of my veggie-loving heart, they have recently gone on green strike. In order to incorporate more veggies in their diet, I came up with this recipe:

Spinach-Banana Muffins

1 1/2 cup spinach
1/4 cup coconut oil
2 very ripe bananas
1/2 cup sugar
2 whole eggs
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 cup flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda

Combine the first 6 ingredients in a food processor until spinach is creamy and in very small pieces. Mix last 4 ingredients in a separate bowl and fold into spinach mixture until just combined. Grease cupcake pan or use papers and fill 3/4 full. Bake at 375 for 12-17 minutes until toothpick comes out clean. Cooking time may vary depending on stove. Makes about 1 dozen muffins.

Binkie bling clip winner!

Justine is the winner! I will contact you soon! Please keep tuned in for future giveaways and don't forget you can always visit my etsy shop! http://krystalkreations.etsy.com!

Binkie Clip Give-Away!

In honor of my new Etsy shop and in the good light of pending purchase of our new home, I am giving away a custom binkie clip to one lucky person! This person will work with me to customize their own binkie clip! See picture for example. Each clip is studded with genuine Swarovski Crystals. To Enter: Comment to this post with your name, email address, and favorite sports star. I will draw at random and announce the winner on May 5th. Good Luck! To visit my etsy shop: http://krystalkreations.etsy.com

Some pictures!

The very talented Stacey Atkin took some pictures of Donovan for us! Here's a sneak preview!

Some pictures for you!

Donovan's Birth story

I woke up early Sunday morning (1/18) to bloody show and I started having hard (not soft, not medium, but HARD) contractions, they were roughly 8 minutes apart. As the day progressed, they softened up and moved to about every 15 minutes, at this point I didn't think I was in labor, possibly false labor. That night I had a hard contraction about every 20 minutes or so, "definently false" I thought, though they seriously hurt!

A sleepless Sunday night to Monday (1/19) morning, my contractions moved from every 20 minutes or so, to every 5 minutes. I was in labor! We headed to the hospital when my contractions were 2-3 minutes apart, but sadly got sent home when it was discovered that I was only 1 cm dilated! I was seriously frustrated with the pain. We had a regular weekly OB appointment later that day, so I was still hopefully that I would have our son late that night/early morning. I spent the afternoon laboring contractions out in the bathtub as that was the only place I could bear them without breaking out into tears. At my OB appt, I was still only 2 1/2 cm dilated, but my OB prescribed something to help me sleep between contractions.
I managed to get a small amount of sleep Monday night, and late Tuesday morning (1/20) we decided to go back into Triage to see where I was. When I arrived, I was 3 cm dilated and they let me sit there for an hour to see where I would be, if I didn't progress to a 4 in that time, they would send me home again. THANKFULLY, I progressed to a 4 1/2 in 45 minutes and I was admitted! Shortly after being admitted around 11:30, I had an epidural, which was my lifesaver! I was able to sleep and get some well needed rest!

At 1:00ish, they broke my water in hopes of bringing the baby's head down further, I hadn't progressed since I had the epidural. My OB came to check on me at 6:15 and to her and my surprise I was complete and ready to push! They let me labor down for about 45 minutes while they got everything ready since the baby was still at a station-zero. I started pushing about 7:30 and gave birth at 8:14pm! The whole experience was amazing, pushing for me wasn't very difficult, we were joking in between contractions and watching some TV. Somehow managed not to break a sweat!

They put Donovan on my chest as soon as he was born and, seriously, the whole pain of pregnancy and labor went away as soon as I saw my son! He is the most amazing little person in my life and I am thankful for every moment that I get to spend with him! He has been an easy baby so far and I look forward to being the best mama possible!

He is finally here!

I will write more later, but I thought I would copy and paste something that was written by justin on our myspace page.

Post by Justin January 20th was a day.... I just don't believe how lucky I am to be a father! Am I nervous? No... I'm so happy! And I wish someone would shake me because I must be sleeping... But I know I'm not and look forward to every day to come, to spend with Donovan and Stacy. I can't wait for him to be fully awake tomorrow and his eyes open and he gets his first full view of his new world and how many oppertunities it is going to have for him. The whole experience of the birth of your first child (at least for me) is amazing, joy, warmth, smiles that are endless, and just so happy!

Is it possible to die from anticipation??

So I hope everyone had a fabulous Christmas and is doing well in the New Year! Justin and I (Ok, maybe just me) are going crazy from this waiting game, he could be here ANY moment! It really doesn't help that I have been having strong Braxton Hicks contractions every night. In some cases, they have even woke me up! I wish that my water would break, that way I would know that it is certain he is on his way and not just a maybe. Maybes are no fun!

I am supremely uncomfortable in these last weeks. Having to wake up 2-3 times a night to use the bathroom is just a pain in itself! That and the fact that I basically only fit into Justin's shirts! Everyone tells me that I am small for 37 + weeks, but for someone who has never had a stomach before, I feel like a walking continent! In addition to this list of grievences, I have carpel tunnel in both hands, my hips and back kill me everyday, and trying to get comfortable in any position is impossible! Come on baby! head for the light!

In other news, Justin and I hit 6 years together on Thursday, yay for us! I am hoping baby Avara decides to make his debut that day, that way we can celebrate it as a day that we all came together!

35 3/7 weeks!

Seriously now, this child can come out in exactly 1 week and 4 days! My body is TIRED of being pregnant! Plus, Justin and I are getting anxious to meet our son! It really seems like these last weeks are dragging along and that he will never be here! My body hurts, I'm tired of random contractions, I just want to give birth! I"m going crazy without horses and exercise!

In other news, snow around here has been crazy! It is getting in the way of everything including birth prep classes, dr appts, work, traveling, you name it! Mom is supposed to leave for cali tomorrow and dad is supposed to leave on weds, lets see if they are actually able to get out of the airport!

I hope everyone is well and safe this holiday season!

33 3/7 weeks

Well, Baby Avara has dropped! and BOY! am I uncomfortable! I feel like he is going to fall out of my stomach at any moment! We have a dr. appointment tomorrow so we shall see if I am effaced or dialated at all. I kinda hoping that we are so that there is an actually reason for all the pain that I am going through.

I think I am officially done with work. They put too many jobs on me at once and I couldn't handle the stress being pregnant. On top of my own job, I was training a new person, supervising and taking over my former manager's position. It was hard and I can't deal with one of the people that I had to work with. She is not the brightest bulb on the string and made things 50% harder than they should have been.

Plus I was in a lot of pain at work and they just didn't really care. So I am done!

Only 6 ish more weeks until he is here! Justin and I are so excited for him to be here and we are starting to prepare other than just buying things. We are going to install the car seat, set up the crib with its bedding, and are in the process of packing a hospital bag! SO exciting!

Anxious..

Justin and I finally registered for baby preparation classes today, and it hit me; I'm going to have a son in less than three months. I have no clue what the future has in store for me, what motherhood has in store for me. All I can hope for is that I try my best and that my best is good enough. Its an overwhelming emotion, this anxious feeling, the anticipation building up inside a person. It causes tears of joy to roll down one's face, the fear of the unknown is greater now than I have ever experienced.

Justin and I look forward to the day when we can finally look into our son's eyes and marvel in the little person that we have created. Regardless of the sleepless nights, the smelly diapers, and midnight feedings ahead; I can honestly say that this will be the biggest triumph in my 24 years of living. I can't wait to hear his coos and his sweet murmurs, his screams and his endless crying; every sound will be orchestrated into our biggest accomplishment, our son.

29 weeks!

Yay! only 11 more weeks to go! (hopefully) 3rd trimester has been very interesting, it basically feels like first trimester but with carrying a basketball up front! My morning sickness has been coming back more frequently, I am sensitive to smells again, and boy! am I tired! Baby has been moving around quite frequently, and his movements are becoming slightly painful/uncomfortable as he is getting much bigger. At my ultrasound last thursday, they projected him to be 2lbs 9 oz!

We had our baby shower a couple of weekends ago, and it was so great to have so many friends and family come and support us! We have most of the big stuff that we need for baby, now its just down to the details! So thank you to everyone who was able to come!

On non-baby news: I, (as in Stacy) am getting very ansy to ride some ponies! If I could go over one, just one jump right now, I would be a very happy person. Poor Sailor probably thinks that he will never be ridden ever again! Anyways, I hope everyone is in good health and spirits, check back in soon!

An eventful day :(

I was rear ended by a pickup truck on my way to work this morning, going north on I-5, I had just gotten on the freeway from Federal way. The guy was following WAY too closely even as we got on the freeway, I knew I should have followed my gut feelings and changed lanes! Anyways, I could see that traffic was stopped so I let off the gas and slowed all the way down, I didn't brake until I actually had to stop. All of a sudden, I see the guy coming at me and I KNEW he was going to hit me. There is minimal damage to my car, but I was irritated that the guy tried to blame the accident on me, saying that I had slammed on the brakes. Um you hit me buddy! He actually argued with the state patrol when he was cited for the accident!

So off to the hospital I went to get checked out, since I was cramping slightly and just wanted to make sure that everything with the baby was ok. Justin and I spent a good two hours in the ER and another 4-5 hours in Labor and Delivery getting monitored. Turns out that the baby is fine, I just have a slightly sprained lower back that is KILLING ME. So now I'm on vicodin and taking the day off of work tomorrow to rest. I'm happy everything turned out ok, and most of all, that our baby is safe!

I saw baby kicking from the outside!

I was sitting just now in the computer chair, slightly crooked and sitting to the left side. Baby was kicking super hard and so I lifted up my shirt to see if I could see my stomach move. He kicked super hard and I was able to see a little foot/bump pop out of my right side! It was seriously the coolest thing I have experienced yet during this pregnancy! Justin is in Cali right now, so he missed it, but I'm hoping he will get to see it when he comes home tomorrow!

23 Weeks!

Today we are 23 weeks pregnant and chugging along steadily! My stomach is getting much rounder and harder, and I am feeling quite a few kicks. Some of them are not as soft as they used to be! I think our child is practicing being a soccer player already!

Nothing much else is going on here, work for me is getting tougher, I can't wait to leave Nippon Express and find a company that treats me well. Anyone have any jobs available?

Right now, justin is in California spending time with his family. I was unable to get the time off, plus I couldn't ride in a car for 14 hours, I'm sure my body would protest. So I am home alone with the cats, sad but I can't wait until he gets home on monday!

It has almost been a year since we got married, I can't believe how fast this year has flown by! I hope everyone is well, and keep tuned in for more belly shots!

Its a.....

BOY!!! I mean not that we expected anything else considering we can't breed girls in this family, but we are SUPER excited about having a son! Everything on the ultrasound looked great and the baby is growing right now target! Let the shopping begin!!

Here is a quick pic for you!

18 weeks 3 days!

18 weeks 2 days pregnant!

Last weekend, the family went to southern Cali to celebrate Cameron and Monica's wedding! It was gorgeous at Ragged Point and the ceremony and celebration were beautiful! Afterwards, Justin and I hitched a ride with Utaro and went down to LA to go to Disneyland! After getting in free, fun rides (not too many for me!), and some very fattening food, we have a great time!

We had a doctor's appointment on the 21st of August and everything went well. We heard the baby's heart beat and scheduled our big U/S for Sept 4th! So in less than two weeks, we will know if we are having a boy or a girl! Everything is going smoothly and we can't wait to find out so that we can start shopping! I have been feeling movement for quite a while now, but kicks are starting to have a little bit more umphf to them!

I hope everyone is well, and we love you all. I will update when we find out the gender!

14 weeks!

We are at 14 weeks and 3 days! It seems like time is flying by! I haven't quite started to show yet other than a tiny bump and lots of bloat! So far we have had 3 doctor's appointments and every thing seems to be going well! We have purchased a doppler and use it almost every day to hear the baby's heartbeat, It helps reassure nervous me and makes my heart melt everytime I hear it!

We should be able to find out the gender of baby Avara by late Aug or early Sept, no matter what thought, we will be excited for our addition to the family! Currently we are shopping for cribs, strollers, and car seats. If anyone sees a good deal, please let us know!

Only a couple of more weeks until we fly to Southern Cali for cousin Cameron's wedding and Disneyland! I am excited to see Mickey even though I won't be able to ride most of the rides since I will be 17 weeks by then and hopefully showing more! But it will be exciting for Justin since he has never been!

I hope everyone is doing well, and I hope to post a belly shot soon! Cheers!

So in case you haven't heard...

Justin and I are expecting our first child around January 23, 2009! We are very excited and are looking forward to long nights and poopy diapers! The down side is, I'm having to stop horseback riding, and for anyone who knows me, even the slightest bit.... I'm probably going to go crazy. We have our first appointment on Tuesday, the 10th, so i will update more then!