March 2012

A mystery I would love to solve:  Why do you wake up with the most random songs stuck in your head?  How does that work physically? I picture my neurons sauntering up to my brain jukebox and hitting ‘random play.’  There’s probably a more scientific explanation for it…   A mystery that I did solve [...]

First things first: let’s talk about The Pioneer Woman’s Crash Hot Potatoes. So ridiculously good.  And so ridiculously easy.  It was a nice change from the ‘usual’ baked potato or even mashed potatoes – somewhere in the middle.   A Southern-style feast for a Southern-style side dish: Stir-fry tempeh with BBQ Sauce Crash hot potatoes [...]

I woke up very, very excited to swim.   One painful side effect of pregnancy is that I often wake up with a lower back ache (from sleeping on my side and the bump pulling my muscles forward – that’s my theory, anyway).  The idea of floating, entirely weightless, in water seemed so tempting.  I was [...]

Pick a cake, any cake. Nicole took me out on a cupcake tasting date today to choose a flavor for my baby shower.  So sweet (both literally and figuratively!).  We went to Polka Dot, which offers many gluten-free varieties.  We had four flavors to choose from: Vanilla with vanilla icing Chocolate with chocolate icing Red [...]

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!  Is there green beer in your future?  A shot of Irish whiskey?  A parade?  A pinch? Unfortunately, none of my green shirts fit over BabyHTP, so I don’t look quite as festive as I usually do.   I am very much enjoying Saturday, and I sure hope you are, too.  I [...]

Have you ever wondered why the weather is beautiful during the work week and crap during the weekend? My sister-in-law once told me that she thought it was because by Friday, all the workers’ cars pollute the air so badly the weather take a turn for the worse.  After two days ‘off’ on the weekend, [...]

Last night, I dreamt that I was out of town at an Operation Beautiful speaking event. I had brought the dogs with me, and they were in the backseat of the rental car as I raced back to the airport.  I parked the car, dropped off the keys, and got all the way to the [...]

Time for another guest post from DadHTP (he has also penned posts on Buying a New and Used Bike and How to Shift Bike Gears Without Falling Over).  This post, however, isn’t about sports – it’s about haggling!   On last Friday, we headed to a Ford dealership so DadHTP could buy a car – [...]

Howdy!  DadHTP and I took the morning off to explore potential rental options for him (he’s been living with us and my in-laws’ since he moved here a few weeks ago). Looking for someone else’s house is so much more fun than looking for your own!   In Charlotte, it seems more effective to simply [...]

I know spring doesn’t technically start for another few days, but the season has definitely arrived in Charlotte.  The sun is soft and warm, the flowers are blooming.  Every morning, I wake up to the sounds of a choir of birds chirpin’ their little birdie faces off.  It sounds like the beginning of a Disney [...]

Oh yes. This is ‘that’ placenta post.   But first… Happy third trimester to BabyHTP!  Everyone counts trimesters differently, but my sources say that the third tri starts at 27 weeks, so I’m going with it.  So excited to be in the third trimester.   Here’s what 27 week-old babies are up to: “Baby's lungs [...]

I guess last night’s Motivation worked on me… because I woke up raring to go for my workout (which rarely happens in the AM).  It probably didn’t hurt that spring has officially SPRUNG in Charlotte.  Blossoms everywhere!  Walking around my neighborhood is so pleasant.   James and I went on a 1.5-mile walk. I would’ve [...]

I saw this awesome graphic on the web and wanted to share it with you all.  I’ve really been using positive mantras and reminders to encourage myself to make the healthier exercise and diet choices lately – it’s so-so-so much more effective than cajoling or bribing.  If you need some positive motivation, too, here are [...]