Random ramblings of the 2013 variety

* I feel like I've reached one of those "you know you're adult when ..." milestones. I woke up this morning in the middle of a dream where Tim and I were sitting at the bank talking to someone about a mortgage, and I was busy trying to figure out how much longer we could stay because we had to get home in time for the sitter to leave. Sigh.

* Heard in the house this weekend: Elle telling Tim "Daddy, I don't understand what you're talking about" and "Daddy, get. off. the. couch."

* I'm starting to cook more again, and I used the slow cooker for both meals this weekend. If you use a slow cooker and don't the Reynolds Slow Cooker Liners, you're working too hard to clean out your slow cooker. They. Are. Amazing. I've been using them for at least a year now and am in love.

* I asked my Facebook friends for some book suggestions, and I'm totally engulfed in "Divergent." I started it late Saturday night and by the end of Sunday I was already more than halfway through. I don't have a ton of time to read with the toddler around, so my progress says a lot about how the book sucked me in.

* I had a bad experience with my DHA pill last week. I know it's important to take, but I'm also not a fan of things coming back up, so it was hard for me to take it without feeling ill. I found a gummy prenatal + DHA/folic acid supplement, though, at Target, and so far, it is a miracle worker for me. I get the stuff I need without the gagging I hate, and the baby wins, too.

* Speaking of the baby, I'm super excited about one of the gifts Tim gave me for Christmas - I asked for another copy of The Belly Book to chronicle this pregnancy. I know it's likely that I will not be able to capture every moment of Baby Bean's life like I have Elle's. But I'd like to not start off on the wrong foot. It's been easy for me to keep up with the book since I do my weekly updates on the blog, and I like being able to compare the two pregnancies.

* I'm also digging the same prenatal Pilates DVD that I blogged about last pregnancy. I love that it has 10-minute sessions that I can do alone or combine in whatever way I choose - I'm a fan of the flexibility, core and buns/thighs segments. They almost always make my aches and pains feel better and definitely helped my back as my pregnancy with Elle progressed. When I'm not up for cardio but want to feel like I've done something, it's nice to stretch and move for 20 minutes or so. The postnatal segment kicks my butt, too - a day or two of doing those ab exercises and I already started to feel toned. A-mah-zing.

* Today, I read with (more) interest (than I'd like to admit) that Kate Middleton's due date has been confirmed(!). She's due in July (ooooh, just like me!). An actual day hasn't been announced, but I've been intrigued by the royal pregnancy since my sister pointed out that Kate and I were probably around the same gestation when Kate when hospitalized last month. I was sick, but not as sick as the Duchess of Cambridge. I thought it would be cool if Kate and I had the same due date (or heck, deliver on the same day!) since we already share a connection, what with her deciding to get married on my 30th birthday and all.