the chronicles of us

Insta-Friday

2012-02-10T14:36:00.001-06:00

Ready for our week in photos? I was sick for two of my days off, so these are kinda lumped a little later in the week.

Enjoy!

1) Hector wanted Cohen to experience chocolate milk, so they shared a glass. Two straws and all!
2) Cohen rode the dolphin at the park.. He wasn't the biggest fan yet.
3) Daddy and Cohen got to pose by a railroad car at the park!
4) What a pretty park we found!
5) Cohen unraveled the toilet paper. Again. :-/
6) Swingin!!!! Weeee!
7) We're couponing!! Ready to save some money!
8) P-Land is getting a Starbucks..brewing station:)

What's Cookin' Wednesday Bonus Recipe

2012-02-09T23:37:00.000-06:00

Ok, I felt bad that I gave you a recipe that a) I've already done on the blog and b) flopped miserably this time around. So, I've decided to include today's crock pot meal for your culinary fancy.

I made beef stew today! Very simple.

Gather up a few of your favorite veggies.. carrots and potatoes for us. I put in some LARGE leek slices for Hector and so I could pick around them.

I cut up my own beef roast, it was manager's special at Kroger. You need about 2 pounds.

Toss it with salt, pepper and flour. Then brown it in a pan with vegetable oil.

Just brown it! Don't cook it! :)

While meat was browning, I put 2 cups of beef stock, 1 1/2 cups water and 1/2 cup of red wine (we had open and on hand) into the crock pot.. Oh, and this handy beef stew seasoning mix. ;)

I put it on high, since it was already 1 pm when I was putting this together.

Chop up the veggies. I had too much potato... I get it.

5 hours later:

Yummy beef stew!

It was so tasty! I feel like it was too easy? Did I leave something out? We just ate it with rolls. Coco even loved it.

What do you put in your beef stew?

What's Cookin' Wednesday

2012-02-09T23:23:00.002-06:00

Sorry this is a day late, guys... life got in the way.

Yesterday I wanted to make some cookies to take to our community group dinner.

I remembered back to these cookies.

Yes. These were the ones I'd decided on. Straight from the KitchenAid cookbook that comes with the mixer. They were divine last time I made them. Why not attempt again, and cheat a little on my recipe for this week?

Ingredients:
1 Cup sugar
1 Cup brown sugar
2 sticks of butter, softened
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
2 eggs
3 Cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
12 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips (1 bag)

Cream sugars, butter, vanilla and eggs together.

Slowly add in the flour, baking soda and salt, slowly over 2 minutes.

Resist the urge to bail on the cookies and eat all of this dough.

Add in the chocolate chips with mixer on "stir" for 15 seconds.

Dollop rounded spoonfuls onto baking sheet. Bake at 375 for 10-12 minutes.

Out pop cookies!

So, I'm not sure what happened to mine. They turned out verrry crispy. I think problem #1 was that I made them too large. #2, because they were so large, I kept taking them out of the oven, deciding they were still raw, and putting them back in. I read that maybe I stirred the dough too much? I dunno. I was SO disappointed in these cookies. I nearly didn't take them, but I figured I had to have something to show for being 25 minutes late to dinner. (flour fiasco..don't ask) I just remember them being fluffy mounds of chocolatey Heaven last time.

I did reheat one tonight and it was pretty decent. A little chewy, but decent. :) Any suggestions?
Happy baking!

Super Bowl Sunday!

2012-02-08T14:12:00.002-06:00

So, I worked on Sunday, but got PTO at 3 o'clock! Nice when that happens. I signed up for it, hoping I'd get it since it was Super Bowl Sunday. The Rays were hosting a football get together, and I wanted us to go.

I didn't really care about the "game" part.. but I love parties with friends. But, ironically, my half time score bet AND final score bet were the closest! :)

My contribution to the party (the price you pay for working right before) *Thanks Kroger*

Me and Jackie

Hector, Tyler, Maggie and Patrick

Coco and Daddy holding hands :) :)

Had to post this picture of PK playing with Maggie in her princess tent. Does he fit?

Thank you so much, Jackie and Patrick, for having us over! We LOVED the food and fellowship. Those BBQ sliders were delicious!

Go Giants! (I just had to ask Hector to remind me who won..)

Play Date!

2012-02-08T13:51:00.000-06:00

Last Thursday we had a play date with McKensley, Ellie, Gabby and Brynlee. Cohen and a bunch of girly girls! We wish our boy pals lived closer... Eli and Kade! haha

Here are some pictures from the get-together.

Sweet McKensley

Cohen found the only manly toy there and took to it!

Ellie having tea

Hmmm.. where to go now...?

Chaos!

Coco tried to push Gabby around in the car

First shot at a couch picture :) Brynlee was NOT having it!

Decent... Gabby's looking away though..

Cohen's first time on a slide!

Lost his balance :(

He's ok!

LOVED the swing, though!

See? Loved it.

So Mama helped him down the slide. :)

Play dates are so fun! It's always interesting to see how Cohen will play with other kiddos, since he doesn't go to any sort of day care. At this point they still play a little independently, so he's right on track. Gets a tad bit upset when something is taken from him. It'll be sweet when that actually play together, rather than beside each other. :)

Insta-Friday

2012-02-03T22:52:00.000-06:00

I've seen lots of bloggers doing this.. and.. well.. I take pics on my iPhone all week long too! :) Might as well share 'em since those are our everyday, spur of the moment pictures! Enjoy! And post up with Life Rearranged to share your pictures!

Cohen Alexander thinks he is a BIG boy and that he can "work" on our laptop. This is often right when little hands get a gentle swat and he is redirected to something else. Ahh, toddler hood is upon us.

Daddy and Coco got a very special treat this past Sunday while Mama was at work... They went to visit Baby Julia Belle! She was 5 precious days old in that picture! So sweet! I think Hector looks GREAT with a baby in his arms! eh, eh? I kid, I kid! Lord knows we're nowhere near ready for another!

This is the man of the house, for sure. This toy may have been our most valuable toy.. The activity table.. you know, the one with all the different noise-making mechanisms...... That goes off at all hours of the night, I feel like. But Coco LOVE it. Mainly slamming the book pages over or slamming the "little laptop" shut. Such is life.

This little piece... We had been searching for a cheap "new" entertainment center, one that Cohen can't destroy and where he can't reach all the buttons on electronics. Well, we found this on Craig's List, listed for $50. It has three drawers and two doors, AND an adorable hutch that sits on top. It's really for your kitchen--so what? We get there and it's this elderly couple having to sell all of the lady's sister's belongings because she is severely disabled with Alzheimer's. We got to talking about my grandmother (and her [our] struggle with the disease), she took a shine to Cohen, and they let us have it for $30! STEAL. Have you priced furniture lately? We have, and we simply can not afford it. But this? And Hector got a can of paint and is making it shabby chic amazing! I'll do a whole post on this later on, when it's finished.

Quite possibly my favorite picture of the two of them to date. We think he's so big and so grown, but look how tiny he is next to Daddy. I just love it. This was at a park near Cohen's friend, McKensley's house. We had so much fun!

Cohen got to swing for the first time! Yea, I'm a little embarrassed that he hasn't been on a swing in his entire one year existence.. But hey! He's done it now! And he loved it.

And last but not least, we had tacos the other night and guess who thought they should get some taco, too? The one year old. And he takes MAN bites. He uses those three teeth to their fullest potential.

I think I'm going to like Insta-Friday!

Baby boy is 12 months old!

2012-02-02T00:02:00.000-06:00

Have you been blog stalking for that 12 month update? Have you been visiting, thinking "She got all the other months within a few days.. where's the 12 month update?" Well, relax readers. It's here.

Can I just say... WE MADE IT! WE MADE IT A WHOLE YEAR! First time parents and we didn't screw up any major aspects of his life! We learned a lot, though. We learned about decision-making and research. We learned about compassion for a little boy's heart. We learned that you really don't need sleep to lead a somewhat normal life. We learned that it's hard to discipline without smiling because that boy is so darn cute. We learned that he loves the movie Tangled, and subsequently learned all the lines and songs in that movie. We learned that sometimes a mama hug can fix anything. We learned that walking one year olds can reach anything. Anything. Ahh, yes, we've learned so much.

Oh, yea, and one year olds also don't sit still next to a toy truck for a picture.

...unless mama stashes some Puffs in the back of the Tonka truck. :)

what, there's no more?

dropped one.. must retrieve

Puffs are DA BOMB!

At the doctor on his actual birthday. Mean, I know.

..loves his mama!

Just before the shots... :(

He weighed 21 pounds, 12.5 ounces. 13 pounds and .1 ounce more than his birth weight! He was 29.5 inches tall. He grew 9.5 inches in one year! Our big guy!

Mama felt bad about the shots on his birthday, so what did Coco get? Blue and green pancakes! And BACON! :)

Words can't even describe my love for this little boy!

Baby's first haircut!!

Finished! How handsome is he? Went from baby to little boy in 20 minutes flat!

Cohen's birthday present from mama and daddy. His new, big boy car seat!

Happy boy!

Pure joy. It doesn't get any better than this!

He's walking, eating mostly table foods, gets 3-4 bottles a day. No words yet. Lots of babbling. Several teeth and more coming in! He still doesn't sleep through the night. Uggh. Same story, different day. He naps really well, twice a day. But at night, he wakes up screaming around 1-2am. I always want to pick him up and cuddle him, but I know that is not what will get us through this stage. Last night he cried it out. Tonight, he will cry it out if/when he wakes. And hopefully it will only take a couple more nights. We'll see.

Happy Birthday Coco!

What's Cookin' Wednesday Bonus Recipe

2012-02-01T23:13:00.002-06:00

I'm gonna be generous today and share this little gem with you. I was looking for an appetizer recipe that incorporated two of my faves: chicken and bacon. Pinterest saved the day and hooked me up with Diary of a Recipe Addict.

Sweet and Spicy Bacon Chicken

Ingredients:
chicken breast, cut into tender-sized pieces or two-bite pieces (like mine)
bacon, lots of bacon (I ran out and had to really cheat a few of the chicken pieces)
salt & pepper
chili powder
garlic powder
light brown sugar

Cut up your chicken breasts.

Sprinkle with all spices.. generously.

Wrap in half a strip of bacon (or thirds of bacon, in some of our poor chick pieces towards the end) and roll in light brown sugar.

Place in oven safe dish, coated with cooking spray. Bake at 400* for 30-40 minutes, until chicken is done and bacon is crispy. We let ours go for nearly 45 minutes. I do have one tip: take them out 1/2 to 3/4 of the way through and pour out the grease. I felt this grease was keeping the bacon from crisping up. Problem solved.

And Voila!

These were enjoyed by my community group ladies tonight. (And I left some for the guys, who hung out at our apartment.) I think... they liked them. :) Who wouldn't? I hope you enjoy them too! Happy cooking!

What's Cookin' Wednesday

2012-02-01T22:46:00.000-06:00

As promised, I have a new recipe for you guys! This one is very near and dear to my heart. ;) We were introduced to this dish by our friends, the Allen's. They brought this to us when we had just gotten fresh, baby Cohen home from the hospital and were too sleep deprived to think of making a meal, much less buying the necessary ingredients. Please enjoy this, guys, hubby and I make it on a weekly basis.

Ingredients:
2 cans tomato soup
1 can Ranch style beans
1 can whole kernel corn
1 can cream style corn
1 can chicken broth
1 can diced tomatoes
1 pkg. Ranch dressing mix
1 pkg. taco seasoning
1 can water
Chopped chicken *we buy a whole rotisserie chicken and just tear it up... super moist and super easy

Ok, y'all, here's the tricky part.

Open all the cans. Pour them in the crock pot. Add the seasoning packets, and the shredded chicken.

*Don't necessarily get a BBQ chicken, that's all Kroger had out this morning.

Cook on high for 2-3 hours. Done.

I didn't get any pretty pictures of us chowing down on this particular pot o' soup, because we took it to some friends of ours who just had a baby! Talk about paying it forward!

Pair this up with some lime juice, crema Mexicana and avocado... mmm. Perfection. Crumble up some tortilla chips.. go to town! Sprinkle with queso fresco? Yes, please.

Best part?

Clean up is a breeze. :)

NEW FLUFF!

2012-01-26T12:17:00.001-06:00

On Facebook last weekend, I saw that hipgreenbaby was having a huge sale. I popped over there and found something we'd been looking for. A nighttime diaper!

Kawaii Goodnight Heavy Wetter diaper! Now we can stuff and stuff and stuff Cohen's nighttime diaper to where it won't leak at night.. but then he can't close his little leggies. And baby boy pees a lot at night!! Like, he saves it up during the day and just let's it go at night. So, I was very excited to find these for very cheap. I ordered two to try.

Well, two days ago, this was in the mail!

Each diaper has 2 microfiber inserts and is lined with super soft micro fleece.

Here it is on Coco.

Hard to get a picture of him standing still..

See? (yes, those toys are always out like that...)

Nice and fluffy for bedtime!

Baby boy woke up this morning with NO leaks! The outer, waterproof layer is a little slicker.. feels a tad bit cheaper than, say, bumGenius fabric. But at less than half the price of BG's.. I think we found a nice nighttime solution. And cute patterns too!

Happy baby, Happy mama!

Quadruple Date

2012-01-26T11:56:00.000-06:00

Last week we went on a quadruple date with the other couples in our community group. The guys planned it and the girl's were surprised. Our only instructions? Wear workout clothes and a sport's bra. Uhhh...? Color me nervous. I'm not very sporty. I was afraid we were heading to some blackout game of softball or something.

But, have faith in your husbands, ladies! At least ours...

They took us to JUMPSTREET! It was SO fun!

It's a huge place, filled with TRAMPOLINES and other large, fun activities.

They have a mechanical bull!

PK lasted about 30 seconds! Or something crazy that no one achieved after him..

Cory crashed..claimed it was "slippery"

Hector talks a big game..

...but wound up there..^

Tyler looked like a pro..for about 3 seconds.

Sallie even tried! (the only girl who tried..)

..eh, it happens to everyone.

See? Wall-to-wall trampolines!

Hector the dwarf, and Tyler doing a crazy flip!

Go Patrick, go Patrick, GO!

They had a FOAM PIT!

PK swung in!

I slid in!

And proceeded to get quite stuck.

It's harder than it looks, ok?

Pretty sure that's Cory buried in there..

Ashley got brave and did the swing.

So did Hector!

He went pretty far down!

Sallie launched off the trampoline!

Jackie slid!

Tyler swung! (notice Jackie's head there?) :)

And Cory couldn't resist one more time!

This was a GIANT slide, that you go down in an inner tube. It was SCARY! I just knew I'd fall out of the tube.. But, here I sit telling the story.. I didn't fall out. :)

There's Ashley!

And Cory.. the only clear picture I could get... :(

And there was a set of wavy trampolines! You could get to going FAST if you ran down these!

We took a video of our entire group running across these, and Watermark wants it to promote community. YAY! We do have fun.

There was also dodgeball, on trampolines, of course. We played, but it's hard to dodge and take pictures at the same time.

What a FUN night! And we topped it off with dinner at Raising Cain's. YUM! I totally recommend this place if you're in the Plano/Frisco area.

What's Cookin' Wednesday

2012-01-26T11:25:00.001-06:00

I wanted to start a new way to share recipes. We do like to try new recipes, we just don't always do it. A few days ago we made something DELICIOUS. We made it once before with our friends Natalie and Ry. (Well, Natalie rescued our amateur selves and practically made it for us..). That being said, I'm going to try to share a new recipe with you every Wednesday. Pretend you didn't see that this is really posted on Thursday. (it's my first week, give me a break.)

We call it...
Chicken in Riesling
think.. coq au vin... just with chicken instead of rooster and white wine instead of red!

We found the recipe once upon a time when we had some Riesling at home and wanted to cook with it. So, epicurious to the rescue, we found this. What? You haven't heard of epicurious? GET IT GIRL. There's a free app for iPhones, and there's a website. Search virtually billions of recipes and it will create a grocery list for you too. Yea. It's pretty cool.

Here's what you need:

1 whole chicken (about 3 1/2 pound), backbone discarded and chicken cut French style into 8 pieces (We used about 3 large breast pieces, cut into thirds and 6 small thigh pieces, I didn't want this to be my first time butchering a chicken.)

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided

4 medium leeks (white and pale green parts only), finely chopped (2 cups)

2 tablespoons finely chopped shallot (We omitted these... I have an onion issue and I already compromised with the leeks.)

4 medium carrots, halved diagonally (We cut ours into thirds... to make for easier eating.)

1 cup dry white wine (preferably Alsatian Riesling) (We used Chateau St. Michelle Riesling)

1 1/2 pound small (2-inch) red potatoes (It should tell you ahead of time, but you should peel these)

2 tablespoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley (We used freeze dried parsley that we already had.)

1/2 cup crème fraîche or heavy cream (I always have heavy cream, so that's what we used.)

Fresh lemon juice to taste

Ready?
Preheat oven to 350*.

Pat chicken dry, sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Heat oil and 1 T of butter in oven-safe pot over med-high heat until the foam goes down. Brown the chicken in two batches, turning once, a total of 10 minutes per batch. Transfer to a plate to rest.

the first batch: breast pieces

after we turned them... YUM

second batch: thighs

Now, pour off the fat from the pan and cook the leeks, [shallots], 1/4 teaspoon of salt in the remaining 2 T of butter over med-low heat for about 5-7 minutes.

Add the chicken, carrots and wine and boil until the liquid is reduced by half. (3-4 minutes) Cover and braise in oven for 20-25 minutes until chicken is cooked through.

Generously cover peeled, whole potatoes with cold water in 2-3 qt. saucepan and 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt. Bring to boil and simmer until the potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes. Drain, return to pan and coat with parsley.

Stir heavy cream into chicken mixture and season with salt, pepper and lemon juice. Add potatoes. Serve!

Ohhh, yea.

This is a delicious meal that you can use to impress your friends or cook for your date. It's not that difficult, but it takes a little time.. plan accordingly. Allow a good hour to make this.

Bon appetit!

Winter ONEderland Party-Goers!

2012-01-17T01:02:00.000-06:00

Cohen's first birthday party was such a success. Almost all of our friends and family came out to help us celebrate it. We didn't even get pictures of everyone who was there, sadly! (Not to say photog slacked.. there were LOTS of people!!) :) Leslie Pate did a wonderful job capturing all the precious moments of the party and all the details (refer to this post to see them). Leslie is my nursing school classmate, turned friend, turned co-worker, turned photographer, remained friend. What a blessing she is and we're so lucky to get to share in her talent and love of photography! Thanks, Leslie!!

Can I also take a second to thank the Rays?? We held Cohen's party at their home, because, let's face it... small apartments weren't made for first birthday bashes. They graciously opened their home to us and our son and like 40 of our closest friends and relatives. Not to mention the half dozen or so nights I was there preparing for the party! Jackie and Patrick.. we owe you. Big. :) And we love you. Like a lot.

Another thank you: Amber, thanks for getting those gorgeous cake here all the way from Oklahoma! Even if you didn't actually ice them, you used your resources and had Sherri Lee Satterlee make them! And boy... were they my dream cakes! I've considered blindly requesting her friendship on facebook just to say thanks and show her how fabulous they looked on the dessert table and in pictures. Please send her this link! Thank you Sherri! Those cakes were the bomb and I got so many compliments on them!

And my community group girlies, thank you so much for offering up your time and helping me decorate and make favors and treats. You really are my best friends. Cohen is so blessed to have each of you in his life! (me too!!!) Love you Jackie, Ashley and Sallie!

OK! Picture time!

that's Alysse right next to him! missed any others of sweet baby cousin :(

maybe my Mom got some

the face of an angel right there...

My angel, Coco

LOVE this shirt, Natty and Ry!

loves his changuito (monkey) from Uncle Josh

Coco and his beautiful Granna!

Mallory and Deanna

More interested in the straw than the milk

ready for cake!

"put it here Mama!!"

slow at first

little help from Mama

making sure Daddy's watching

a fork to get some cake

and to think.. he doesn't really like being messy!

he got tired...

then got a second wind!

Look at that bum!!! i.die. :)

Amber and David's precious boy, Eli!

isn't he a doll??

Miss Maggie! Took her a while to warm up with her Mama not there, but she did!

Cohen playing with Mark and Mindy

Aunt Peggy and cousin Chris with Pops

Giving Carolina hugs!

BFFs

moving in on Ellie

she's nervously giggling!

hug!!

sweet babes :)

Ellie and her daddy, Steve

enjoying some chocolate milk!

Our community group! minus Sallie :(

Granna, Cohen, Josh, Me, Hector, Pops

Us 3 :)

And lastly, you know you have a good photographer when she can catch a picture of my Dad--smiling like this. :) A Proud Pops right there.

So, yea. He's one now! Because of all these happenings, I haven't done his 12 month update. That's on the agenda for tomorrow.

Well, sweet readers, I have to go to bed now.. please comment and tell me what you think of my first ever big party... I had so much fun doing it! Thanks for checking out my blog!

Cohen's Winter ONEderland 1st Birthday

2012-01-16T23:33:00.000-06:00

Well, it finally came! Cohen's first birthday! I had been planning and looking forward to this party for many months. The theme changed several times before I settled on this. First it was Cat in the Hat/Dr. Seuss, then it was Monsters, and finally, Cohen's Winter ONEderland! He was born 3 weeks after Christmas so I felt a winter themed party was very acceptable. And I wanted a good excuse to use my favorite, trendy color combo: aqua and red!

I'll post pictures and add in party details where necessary, but most details will be at the end. (There are LOTS of pictures!)

Phew! I think that's most of the decor pics, I'll do another post on party guests!

Party Details:

{first and foremost} Photography by: Leslie Pate, visit her facebook

Birthday Printable package: totful memories

Tissue pom-pom tutorial: somewhatsimple

Table cloths: target

Square red/turquoise chargers: target

Aqua snowflake plates: target

Cake stands: made by hubby, supplies from Hobby Lobby

Cupcake stand: wal-mart

Chocolate dipped marshmallows and pretzels: yours truly

Chocolate dipped Oreos: Ashley Allen

Chai Latte and Chocolate Marshmallow mini cupcakes: Sprinkles Dallas

S'More bites: Brenda Fendley, Pampered Chef recipe

Guest cake and smash cake with ribbon icing: Sherri Lee Satterlee

Party plates/napkins: Hobby Lobby

Glass milk bottles: Starbucks frapuccino bottles, drank by me :)

Paper straws (aqua and red): dimestorebuddy

Baker's twine (maraschino red and caribbean teal): CraftyTheresaD

Tortilla roll ups: Jackie Ray

Chicken nuggets: chick-fil-a

Pigs in a blanket: yours truly

Dips: made by me, from Sam's Club

Highchair bunting: made by me using MS Word, "Lullaby" font from dafont, patterned paper from totful memories

Felt snowflakes (aqua): joann fabrics

Glitter snowflakes (multiple colors, actually ornaments): target

Ornament favors: target

S'more kits: made by friends and me

Snowballs (cotton candy): made by Sallie Cole

Favor boxes, bags and tins: Hobby Lobby and target

1st Birthday, personalized t-shirt: heatherrogersdesigns

c,o,h,e,n letters, aqua: Hobby Lobby

I think that's about all of the credits, if I left out something, please ask!

Wrapping up Christmas

2011-12-30T12:53:00.000-06:00

Please excuse the lateness on this post.. I wanted to show you the rest of our Christmas celebrations. I work around the clock now and haven't had time.

Here is our "Christmas morning" at my parent's house, from December 23rd.

Watching Toy Story 3 with daddy, waiting for everyone else to wake up!!

A little scared of the train Santa left, but interested..

Sorting shapes with one of his new toys!

More than he knows what to do with!

Josh and Cortney opening up presents!

Granna and Coco, he was getting sleepy! Not used to getting up so early!!

Cohen with Great Grandmother Ivy. She comes for Christmas morning every year!

Checking out Daddy's new helicopter with Uncle Josh!

Then we had yummy casseroles for breakfast. The rest of the day was lounging, napping, and playing with new gifts/toys. :) Hector and I went back to Plano that evening. We left Cohen with Granna and Pop, his first sleepover EVER. My first night away from him EVER. I bawled like a baby for the 20 minutes we were loading up the car and for the first 30 minutes of our car ride. I hated leaving him.

But he did fine. We Face Timed with him every evening (he stayed two nights) and then Granna and Pop brought him back to us on Christmas day. Boy, was I glad to see that little face light up when I got home from work that day! And boy, was it SO hard to go to work AGAIN the next day. I missed him so much. Next sleepover is not for at least 6 months. Mama has to recuperate.

So, we had our "Christmas Eve" on the 26th, when I got home from work.

Opening his Christmas Eve present from mama and daddy.

He's working pretty hard!

Got a big piece off!

Where is it??

He got a piece of tape stuck to his finger and thought it was funny that it wouldn't come off.

Christmas pj's!!

Trying to fly daddy's helicopter.

Then we set out the Santa snacks!

Yea, Santa gets two Sprinkles cupcakes in our house.

As if Cohen knew it was "Christmas" he woke up at 8, instead of 10!

Guess he took one back to the sleigh with him?? :)

Trying out his new drum!

The thermometer for his "care for me" teddy bear.

Fun with bows!

"Uhh-Ohhhh" his first and favorite 'word'

Unwrapping his "want" from mama and daddy, Woody!

He likes Woody's hands for some reason.

Santa filled our stocking with goodies!

An alien straw-cup from Toy Story, two new paci's, new socks and a Buzz Lightyear cell phone for Cohen!

Scarf and two Florence and the Machines cd's for Hector.

Starbucks gift card, address book and calendar for me!

So, Cohen's gifts this year: Something he wanted (Woody and Buzz figures), Something he needed (kinda hard, but a baby proof case to put our iPhone in for him to play with whilst protecting it from drool and him), Something to wear (his Christmas pj's) and Something to read (a new book, not pictured). Then of course, Santa brought a few things and filled his stocking.

Hector gave me a limited edition HP and the Sorcerer's Stone book (!!!) and my very first pair of Tom's! I gave him his very first pair of Tom's! We're so happy.

We are also so blessed this Christmas Season. JP said at church last week, "Don't let God's presents distract you from His presence." Gen.ius. We are so thankful that Jesus came to earth as an innocent baby some 2,000 years ago, walked among humans for 30 years and then died on the Cross to save us all from our own selfish sins. Can't wait to spend eternity with Him!

Merry Christmas everyone! Hope it was wonderful! Have a safe and happy New Year!

Christmas Eve!!

2011-12-22T23:27:00.002-06:00

Merry Christmas Eve!!

We've been in Paris since Wednesday, midday. Today (Thursday) is our Christmas Eve!

My lovely hospital thinks it necessary that I miss my firstborn son's first Christmas... whatever. I worked all three holidays last year... but whatever. I'm trying not to be bitter, can ya tell? Not only am I working Christmas Day, but Christmas Eve AND the day after. :( Postponing our [little] family Christmas until the 27th of December. but whatever. Jesus wasn't born on the 25th of December was he? We're not certain of the date, so, we'll just celebrate it a little later this year.

ANYWAYS. This isn't a ranting post, it's a happy Christmas post! We're in Paris for our family Christmas with my parents, brother and his girlfriend. Also, my grandmother Ivy and her other son and his family. So, it's been great catching up with everyone.

That's our tree at our home this year, we're so proud and in love with it! Cohen has been pretty good with it, occasionally pulling/shaking the lights and he has a few favorite ornaments to pull off.

caught.

Yesterday we just hung out with Mom and Dad (Granna and Pop, as you know them) ate real tamales for dinner! Yum! Oh yea, and right when we got here, Cohen started walking! Like 75% of the time! It was crazy! He just "got it."

Then today, Christmas Eve, we had our annual get-together with the Shouse family at lunch time. We had great fellowship and exchanged gifts and of course had delicious foods and sweets.

Charles, Darlene, Charlie, Hector, Cohen, me

Opening his gift from the Shouse's, a super cute sweater outfit!

Darlene had me open a bag with a can of olives, and Hector a can of chili. We're like, "Whaaaaa...?" Then buried underneath mine was a gift card to Olive Garden, and Hector's was, of course, to Chili's! Clever, right?

Then we played a friendly round of Rage.. our favorite card game. (it wasn't friendly..)

Finally, we had dinner at my grandmother Ivy's house. Her other son Ronnie and his wife Linda were there with their two granddaughters. Cohen got some sweet new toys and clothes and had a great time with the girls and great-grandma!

Hector and I thought pretty hard about how we wanted to handle Christmas traditions with Cohen. We want him to experience Santa Clause, so we're going to do that for sure. Of course as he get's older, we'll explain how Santa is something extra at Christmas time and should not take away from the real meaning of Christmas. We're planning to do the Elf on the Shelf next year, he's too little this year. It's just a fun Christmas tradition, and we want our children to have no shortage of sweet family memories.

As for gifting our little guy (and future children) we've decided to give him something he wants, something he needs, something to wear, and something to read. Then Santa will be in charge of few surprises and his stocking. The something to wear will come in the form of Christmas pj's on Christmas Eve. Something to read will also be opened on Christmas Eve and read before bedtime. We're so excited to start these traditions with Cohen.

When I bought his pj's at Carter's, they were buy one, get one free, so I got a pair for him to open/wear tonight on [fake] Christmas Eve!

Unwrapping his first wrapped box ever! He did pretty good, wanted to chew on the ribbon, though...

And there he is in his new Christmas pj's, Granna and Pop version! And he's walking there!

My big boy, growing up so fast!

I'll post more tomorrow after Cohen's first "Christmas Morning."

Much love! And Merry Christmas!

11 Months, so soon??

2011-12-14T17:33:00.000-06:00

Well, Cohen is eleven months old now! Yesterday to be exact. Can you believe it? I can't.

I've been putting things together for his birthday party and it's making me all nostalgic and stuff. I see the pictures of his itty bitty 8 pound, 12.4 ounce self, snuggled up on Daddy's chest and I get teary eyed. How were we so blessed to get this amazing bundle of joy? He really is a joy, too. I can't count the number of people who ask me, "Is he always this happy??" And yes, yes he is, I tell them. Unless you catch him from 9 pm to 3 am. I joke, I joke. Or do I?

Here is Cohen's winning 11 Month Tonka truck picture!

(he would not sit facing the front long enough for a picture.)

(also, see that adorable fuzzy diaper sticking out? yea, that's our itti bitti tutto minky diaper; LOVE IT!)

Growth: BIG. We'll get ya some real measurements next month, as he'll go to the pediatrician for his ONE YEAR checkup. Pretty sure he's a 22 pounder, though. He wears 12-18 month pants and 9-12 month shirts.

Eating: He gets 6 ounce bottles of formula 3-4 times a day. He drinks half-strength apple/carrot juice a lot (50 mL of juice + 50 mL of water mixed together). He also drinks water a lot. He has conquered the straw, so he has had a capri sun and a juice box. :) He likes to try our Dr. Pepper and Lemonade too, when we go out somewhere. Just because he loves straws. He eats just about what we eat, I just tear up pieces for him or give him little fork/spoonfuls. He loves chicken. (Yay!) And rice! Especially from Pei-Wei. He's just like his Daddy.

Sleeping: He is so fickle. He's unpredictable and horribly inconsistent. (Sorry, buddy.) He'll usually go down for bed at 9 pm, no problem. But then, he'll wake up 1.5 to 3 hours later ~~crying~~ screaming in his crib. He wants out. We've made the mistake of getting him out a few times, and now he expects it. I'm the weak one, I can't stand to hear him screaming like that, so I cave and go get him. Hubby says NO MORE. And we haven't. I'll go in and give him his paci once. And we'll think he's quit crying but it's just that he's crying so hard he is holding his breath (you know that cry, right?). Ugghhhh. It has to be near the end of all that mess right? We have YET to get a full night's sleep with that child. Nap time, however, is a different story! Boy likes his naps! (Or maybe he's just so deprived from crying for hours the night before.......) He takes a nap in the morning that lasts about one hour (or 2.5 today... he cried a lot last night) and then another one in the afternoon that lasts about one to two hours. Mama loves nap time. Sometimes she takes naps too. :)

Teeth: We have two teeth! The middle two on the bottom. They look so sweet and he likes to touch them and use them. I could never get a picture of them, because he hides them! I know, I know... eleven months and only two teeth? He's a late bloomer! Give him a break. He doesn't seem to be teething right now, but I'm sure there are more around the corner.

Development: This kid has taken steps! He took a whole bunch on Thanksgiving. Some days he'll go the whole day without taking any, he'll just crawl and cruise. Others, he's all about getting adventurous and taking steps. It's precious and he gets very excited when he does take steps, probably because we're clapping like seals when he does it. He's trying to crawl up on the couch. Like, hiking one knee up and not being able to push the rest of the way. He loves his lovey, and brings it out of the crib with him when he wakes up in the morning or from naps, it's so cute. Let's see.. He tries to undecorate our Christmas tree... he pulls at the bows and ribbon on gifts. He has started taking drinks of water and letting the water drip.. no, gush out of his mouth, rather than swallowing it. Must feel cool. And the fact that Mama laughs every time probably doesn't help discourage him.

The other pics?

sitting still, but dark

that's lovey!!

just overturned the Tonka truck

TEETH!! You see them?

Oh, little Cohen. We love you so much. It has been the best 11 months of our lives so far! Thank you for bringing so much happiness to us and everyone you meet!

Soda Can Cupcakes

2011-12-03T00:12:00.001-06:00

When I saw this on the Cookies and Cups blog, I thought... No... There's no way...

There's no way I can mix a can of soda with a boxed cake mix and get delicious cupcakes.

Well, there's only one way to prove something. Do it.

I spent all of $2.50 on this experiment. I did exactly what Shelly, over at Cookies and Cups, did. Because I am one of little faith when it comes to wild and crazy desserts like this.

Behold.

I did not want to be stuck with 11 cans of Sierra Mist Cranberry Splash after I used the one, so I bought a 2 Liter. $1.25. :)

You need 12 oz. of soda (or the amount in one can).

Pour in the soda.

It bubbles and fizzes!

Whisk it together all nice and smooth, until large lumps disappear.

It won't make the full 24 cupcakes. I got 18 out of mine. Only fill them 1/2 - 2/3 full.

They look pink thanks to the Cranberry Splash in my Sierra Mist! And yes, you can use WHATEVER soda you want! Dr. Pepper! Pepsi! Sprite! Cream Soda!

Look how creative I got! I made a Christmas Tree!

My green butter cream.

butter cream:
1/3 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup Crisco
pinch of salt
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
4 cups sifted powdered sugar
4-6 Tbs heavy cream

cream butter and Crisco together in stand mixer. add in salt and vanilla. while on low, slowly add 1 cup of sugar at a time and 1 tablespoon of heavy cream. scrape the sides of the mixing bowl occasionally to get all that goodness mixed up. repeat the additions of sugar and cream until finished. add more sugar or cream until you get your desired consistency.

The verdict:

I threw away all but three of these cupcakes. Yea, I know. What a waste. Thank goodness I only spent $2.50. And I only saved three because Hector told me he wanted to try them.

Sure, they look pretty. But the consistency of the cake was all wrong. When you put it in your mouth it turned into a chewy, gummy mess. Like gross. Like, I'd be ashamed to let someone eat these. I can see how these would be intriguing.. They look perfect. They break apart and crumble when you open them up. They smell like Funfetti cake. They even taste like it, if you can get past the yucky "cake" part of them. I think they were really hurtin' for the egg that I left out.

So, it's a cool thought.. and if you need some prop cupcakes, try these. But don't make people eat them. Just don't.

Oh, and that butter cream? First and last time I'll use that recipe. The Crisco ruined it. All I tasted was grease. Waxy, slimy grease.

Well, this baker is bummed and tired. Better luck next time.

S'More Pie, this is not a joke

2011-12-01T11:19:00.001-06:00

Wednesday's are Community Group day, and we got together for a fun dinner last night. I volunteered to bring dessert! (My favorite course to make!!)

I browsed pinterest for a while, looking for something creative and new. I was taken to a blog for another pin I found, so I began perusing that blog. And landed on this.

S'More Pie.

So, thanks to Cookies and Cups, I have a new blog to waste hours away with.

Here we go.
Gather these things:

1 stick salted butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 tsp baking powder
1 7oz jar of marshmallow creme
6 Hershey's chocolate bars, broken up

Preheat oven to 350.
Spray pie dish with cooking spray.
In a stand mixer, fitted with paddle, creme together the butter and sugar.
Once blended, add the egg and vanilla.
Then, on low, add the flour, baking powder and graham cracker crumbs.
Take half of the dough and press it into the greased pie dish.

Spread the Marshmallow Creme onto the dough.

Next, layer the broken chocolate over the Marshmallow creme. I got excited here and did not picture the chocolate. Or maybe I was eating chocolate. You'll never know.

Roll out the remaining half of dough, between to pieces of wax paper. Roll it into a 9 in. circle.

Peel away one side of wax paper. Carefully flip the dough onto the pie, over the chocolate.

Now, carefully remove the last piece of wax paper.

Seal the edges together.

Now, bake it for 20-25 minutes, until lightly browned. I suggest putting a cookie sheet underneath it, it gets pretty bubbly!

Oh, YEA.

It's hard to get a decently shaped pie piece, but no one seemed to mind.

This pie was dee.lish.uss. A messy mixture of melted chocolate and gooey marshmallow. The easiest way to eat a S'more. I'm not sure how I don't think up stuff like this on my own.

I may or may not have had a slice of this for breakfast with a tall glass of milk. Again, you'll never know.

Well, thank you Cookies and Cups!

what i wore wednesday

2011-11-30T16:52:00.001-06:00

Did ya miss this last week? I did. But, let it be known, that we were traveling last Wednesday and I was in no shape, form or fashion for a picture to share with the world. Today, I got dressed.

And I posed. Ok, ok, not really. I'm actually placing the last ornament on our tree. No, really. And pardon those blue lights on our tree... They're real attention hogs.

Henley top: The Gap

Lacey undershirt: Old Navy

Skinny jeans: Old Navy (noticing a trend here?)

Boots: Not gonna lie, F'Uggs from Target (a girl's gotta be savvy too, right??)

Perfume: Republic of Women, Banana Republic

You're probably thinking, this girl likes Gap, Inc... And you'd be correct! I worked my way through nursing school by working at Banana Republic. One of my all-time favorite jobs. I met my hubby working there. I spent a lot of paychecks there. I made a lot of friends working there. So, the Gap, Inc brand is very near and dear to my heart.

Did you get out of bed and get dressed today? I hope so! Link up over at the Pleated Poppy and share your outfit with the rest of us!

Fall/Christmas Wreath

2011-11-28T22:29:00.001-06:00

About a month ago I crafted a very cool wreath for fall. It ended up looking pretty Christmas-y, but, it's super cute!

Where did I get my idea? Pinterest! From Ellen's Creative Passage blog.

See? It's a little Christmas-y, but I'm glad now, because I can leave it out for longer than November!

So here's what you need:

grapevine wreath (Hobby Lobby)

wool felt (JoAnn's)

hot glue and gun

scissors

bowls of varying sizes

marker

Pick your colors! Any colors! Match any decor!

Trace your circle.

Cut out your circle.

Spiral cut your circle. Stop when you have a small circle in the middlel As you practice and get better, you can vary the width of your spiral, depending on the type of rose you want.

Start with the outside point.

Begin rolling it up, making a flat bottom out of the edge the scissors touched.

Keep on rolling! Keep it tight and straighten as you go.

This is what it should look like.

Spread hot glue all over the rolled edges, like so.

Fold the leftover circle onto hot glue, making sure to cover all those edges.

Trim of the excess of that circle you just hot glued down.

Voila! How pretty!

Then change up your bowls to make different sizes. Or, like I mentioned, cut a wider spiral. Even cut your spiral a little uneven to get a more "natural" looking rose.

Once you finish as many as you want, lay them out on your grapevine wreath. Then, one at a time, hot glue them down. You can fill your wreath with way more, I chose to do an uneven look. Afterwards you can add bling if you want! The blog creator (who created this first) added some glittery snowflakes to her wreath after finishing it.

Have fun!! Be creative!

Hosting Thanksgiving

2011-11-28T20:53:00.001-06:00

This year, we got the special opportunity to host Thanksgiving Dinner for my Mom and Dad and brother. We were just thrilled! I started planning for decorations and menu about a month ago.

I'm very in to free printables from the internet. It is thanks to free printables that I was able to do a lot of my Thanksgiving decor! I'll start with pictures.

The Table

My handmade "Give Thanks" banner!

Letters: Font from dafont, printed via Microsoft Word

Paper: Hobby Lobby

Twine: Hobby Lobby

Plates and Napkins: Hobby Lobby

Printable Napkin Rings: Paper&Cake

*can also be used to wrap water bottles or candles*

Simple centerpiece.

Beaded charger/mat: Target

Candlesticks: Hobby Lobby (already had)

Mercury glass piece: our treetopper from Hobby Lobby

Pumpkin salt and pepper shakers: gift

candles are simply covered with scrapbooking paper and embellished with twine

Printable Napkin Rings: Paper&Cake, just another version

Place card/food labels: Paper&Cake

Potato and Sweet Potato Gratin: recipe here, found on pinterest

Green Bean Casserole: recipe here, found on pinterest

Mashed Potatoes: made by my Momma, recipe: secret

*why two potato dishes? Mom pointed out that I had wanted traditional mashed potatoes with turkey gravy when I first talked about hosting, then I went and made a menu including only the gratin potatoes. She fixed my dilemma!*

Thankful Subway Art Poster: I can no longer find this! So sorry!

Frame: Hobby Lobby

Roasted Turkey Roulade: recipe here, from the Barefoot Contessa

check out the first time we made this turkey and hosted Thanksgiving

My handsome Hubby carving the turkey!

So, dinner was a smashing success! The turkey was beautiful and delicious, and all the sides were to die for!

After dinner we had to lay back and play games for a while before setting up the dessert table. We were TOO full!

Pecan Pie: made by my Momma, recipe: secret

Pumpkin Parfaits: recipe here, found on pinterest

Pumpkin Spice Marshmallows: Central Market

Brownie Bites: Ghirardelli

Food flags: handmade by me from scrapbook paper and toothpicks

Cohen with his uncle Josh, watching the game :)

Remember this?

From March 5, 2011, Cohen was about 7 weeks old. LOVE this picture!

The handsome big brother and me. Here we are, 27 and 25 years old!

I didn't get any other pictures. :( I was busy running around the kitchen and taking pictures of tables and food! ;) I hope you enjoyed, and I hope all of your Thanksgiving celebrations were memorable ones! Please feel free to share!

Ten Months!

2011-11-28T19:48:00.001-06:00

Cohen turned 10 months old on the 13th of November... um, that was 15 days ago. I really, really fell down on the monthly update and the Tonka picture.

Well, he is progressing nicely. :) Too fast, but nicely. I'm not gonna do the regular update since 11 months is right around the corner. He got his first tooth on Halloween! At ten months old, he's still not walking. He will stand alone, and stumble a step or two toward the couch or us. He cruises everywhere (walking by holding on to furniture) and crawls really fast. He still drinks formula, but he's on soy formula now. Because of a nasty stomach bug he got, his pedi recommended soy. And he likes it! And his stomach is cleared up! We figure we'll just keep him on the soy formula, rather than flip-flopping, since he'll start cow's milk after he turns one. (hallelujah!!) I don't make a whole lot of pureed food for him anymore, he eats chunks of chicken, turkey, banana, apple, carrot, broccoli, cheese and other things, without it being mushy. (hallelujah!!)

He's already in size 12 month clothes and jammies. I didn't weigh or measure him. :( I ~~promise~~ hope I will get better.

Anyways, I was at work on Saturday (the 26th) and texted Hector and asked him to please take his Tonka picture, since it was 13 days late. I know, did I not learn from last time? Apparently not.

I got home and saw Cohen still in his sleep shirt.. and thought, "Surely he changed him earlier and got the pictures"... This was the best picture Daddy captured.

But, ya know? I kind of love it. I think it personifies exactly what happens in their time together. No one comes out of jammies, baby don't need no pants and one sock is always enough. :) There may be no sweeter time than Daddy-Coco time.

Some of the runners-up?

always checking out the wheels!

coming to attack the camera, I'm sure...

flipping it back over after Daddy right sided it again, I bet!

I'm already working feverishly on his first birthday party.. and it's a month and a half away! Is it too early? OR panic time? I can't tell anymore. But it's going to be precious.

Please know, that 11 months will be on time and a thorough update. Thanks so much for checking in!

Preview of Thanksgiving!

2011-11-09T14:05:00.000-06:00

We're hosting Thanksgiving at our place this year, so I was looking for some cute invites and printables online. I found these. More on these later, but here's a preview!

I'm very excited for what's going down in 2 weeks! :)

what i wore wednesday: embracing fall!

2011-11-09T13:51:00.000-06:00

True to my word, it's Wednesday again and I'm digging in the closet for something cute to wear!
Best of all? I'm sharing it with you guys, in hopes you'll do the same!

The challenge? Open those eyes, put both feet on the floor, open the blinds and dive into your closet! Find something in there (I know you've got fabulous clothes in there!) and put it on! Start your day feeling put together. Get stuff done! Carpe diem!

Ok, enough motivation.. here's what i wore wednesday!

Tank: Banana Republic

Cardigan: Ann Taylor

Jeans: Old Navy

Boots: Andrew Geller, DSW

Necklace: Kohl's

Perfume: "Cozumel", from my parent's trip to Cozumel

Hello fall and bring on the cardigans and boots!!!

So, I tried harder this week! Can you tell?

So, you do the same, then link it up over at The Pleated Poppy so others can see what you're wearing!

Adventures in baby food making: Pasta with hidden veggies

2011-11-03T22:09:00.000-05:00

You've probably been wondering, "Did Emily quit feeding Cohen?" "Why haven't I seen a post about making his baby food in a while??"

Well, I have been making his baby food, but it got pretty basic for a while, what with traveling, working a little extra, Halloween, etc. And I didn't want to bore you with those details. Basic as in, peach & mango puree, sweet potato/carrot/butternut squash puree, grilled chicken breast, scrambled eggs and our go-to, oatmeal with bananas. You didn't need to see those, right?

But, yesterday, I made him Pasta with hidden vegetables. This was pretty involved, I might as well have made us some with some salt in it. ;)

ingredients:
2 T EVOO
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 small carrots, peeled and chopped
1 medium zucchini, trimmed and chopped
3/4 cup wiped and chopped button mushrooms
3 plum tomatoes, peeled, seeded, chopped
1 T unsalted butter
(1) 15 oz can diced tomatoes
1/2 cup vegetable stock
1/4 t brown sugar
1 T torn fresh basil leaves
freshly ground black pepper
6 ounces of pasta shapes
3 to 4 T mascarpone cheese (optional)

Heat oil in saucepan, add onion and garlic, saute for 3 minutes. Add carrots and saute 4-5 minutes. Add zucchini and saute 2 minutes, followed by mushrooms for another 2 minutes.

Add the fresh tomatoes and the butter and saute for 2 minutes. Pour in the can of tomatoes and half of the juice. Finally add the stock, sugar and basil, and season with pepper to taste. Cover and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes, then blend to a puree.

Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to the package instructions until tender. (Don't add salt.) Toss the cooked pasta with the veggie puree and mascarpone (if using).

So, there's the instructions. I doubled this entire recipe because it said this would make 4 servings. Well, they lied. I doubled it and got 40 - 1 oz portions, or 20 Cohen sized portions. So, yea, my freezer is packed.

Let's see. I substituted leeks for onions. I used star shaped pasta. I used on-the-vine tomatoes instead of plum tomatoes. I did use the mascarpone cheese.

[I do not personally eat mushrooms.]

Saute leeks and garlic.

Add carrots.

Add zucchini.

Add mushrooms.

Add everything else.

Add the pureed veggie mixture to the pasta stars (already cooked).

Stir together and add the mascarpone cheese.

Mmmm first bite!!

Pretty sure he likes this one!

Reaching for more!

Well, I'm glad he likes it, since we have a months worth of it. ;)

Crock Pot Tuesdays

2011-11-03T21:32:00.000-05:00

I have been working on a lot of Tuesdays lately and we also threw a trip to Paris in there, but I do have a new Crock Pot Tuesday dish for you!

From Pinterest, I found Hawaiian Chicken! It was a recipe from a website called $5 Dinners.

All you need is:
chicken breast pieces
a can of sliced pineapples in juice (not water)
cinnamon
crushed red pepper
salt and pepper

I used frozen chicken breasts.

Put chicken in the bottom. Layer with pineapple slices, pour in 1/2 cup of pineapple juice.

Sprinkle with 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp of crushed red pepper flakes, and salt and pepper.

Set your crock pot on low for 8 hours (high for 4-6).

I made (again) brown rice to serve with the chicken. I also made some caramelized carrots.

Sliced carrots sauteed in sugar and butter. YUM.

There you have it!

If I do this meal over again, I'd add some soy sauce to the mix. Soy sauce and pineapples are a match made in heaven. My chicken got a little tough (gasp!). I know that's slow cooker blasphemy. I'm not sure if I left it in for too long or if I needed more liquid. (enter soy sauce) But it tasted great! And it was dirt cheap to make! I already had the chicken, cinnamon, red pepper flakes, rice, carrots, butter, sugar.. All I had to buy was the pineapple. [79 cents] :)

Painting with Pinterest

2011-11-03T16:45:00.000-05:00

I decided to do a few crafting projects with Cohen for the fall season. One for us and the other, a gift. ;)

The first one, for us, is a Halloween project. I found this post on Pinterest a long time ago. It's a simple child's painting on black construction paper.

I decided to AMP it up and turn it into something that could hold interchangeable art. Here's what my Cohen made.

Sweet little 9 month feet.

5 different sizes of embroidering hoops

1 square of yellow felt

1/4 yard of black felt

white paint

black paint

Cut the felt to size, put into the hoops. Pour some paint onto paper plates. Smear those toes into the white paint. Carefully, and this part is tricky, place the ever-moving foot onto felt, make sure those toes get squished onto the felt. But try not to let the foot smear... or you lose the ghostly look! After dry, paint a dot of black for the eyes on each ghost.

Next season, change out the art!

Then we wanted to make some art for Granna and Pop!

I found this post on Pinterest around the same time as the other.

Very simple, painted onto a blank, white {cheap} canvas from Hobby Lobby. Cohen presented his gift to Granna and Pop when we visited for an early fall party a few weeks ago in Paris. Here is ours.

Happy Fall!!

Cute right? Well, it was hard to get Cohen to straighten out his little fingers to make the hand print leaves. Real hard...like he didn't want to, at all.

So, obviously, I painted the tree stem (stump?). Then we poured the various colors of paint onto paper plates. We then put Cohen's little fist into the paint and tried to make him paint and have fun. I seriously thought he'd love this. He kept his fist in a ball and we had to pry it open and move the canvas to his palm, over and over again. And he cried and kicked and screamed. But, we succeeded and got this great work of art. Granna and Pop were just giddy. :)

Thank you, Pinterest, for once again, revolutionizing this wanna-be crafter's life.

Trick or Treat!!

2011-11-02T21:56:00.000-05:00

This was Cohen's first Halloween and it was great! We were all set for him to be a monster, had (have) a very cute monster costume from Pottery Barn Kids. The only problem with the monster costume was that it was a size 2T. :( My Cohen is 9 months. I just wanted that darn costume so bad, I didn't care what size it was! Well, reality hit me when we tried to put him in it and it dragged the floor. :( SO, we decided to save it for next year. And we were spurred on in our decision when we saw the most adorable pirate costume clearanced at Babies R Us for $11.60. No joke. Three days before Halloween and it was clearanced! Sold!

So, after my third day of work on Sunday, we got together with our community group for a fun Halloween Party at the Ray's house! Hector and I had worked real hard on our costumes, and built it up... a lot. Then when we were in the bathroom putting on our costumes and getting Cohen into his, I started to worry that no one would get it.. :-/ But, we had to come out some time..

Anyone? Anyone? We're Jacob Black and Bella Swan from Twilight!!!

We thought we were so clever... And our friends in our group only got it after examining Hector's getup. Yea, yea. Someone thought I was J.Lo... I'll take that!

Here's an iPhone picture of us, posing.

So, yea. Jacob and Bella. (We had to do Jacob, rather than Edward, because of obvious skin issues.) ;)

Our sweet baby was a pirate!

He preferred to chew on his hook instead of wearing it on his hand. :) How cute is he??

Ranger was of course, a Texas Ranger. :)

The Allen's were Indians! (Native Americans?) and I forgot their made-up names...

And this is Farmer Tyler and his wife Sallie, with their precious cow, Maggie!

So we had fun, eating Halloween treats and playing Halloween charades. :) I didn't get a picture of Jackie and PK :( But Jackie was a red crayon and PK was a pilot!

The next day was real Halloween. That evening we dressed Cohen up in his pirate costume again and took him around to our friend's homes.

Trick or Treat!!!

Cohen wasn't sure about Darcy dressed like a hot dog! :)

Trick or Treat! He actually thought he could have candy. :) So, he got some for mama.

It was a very sweet Halloween. Thanks for our community group for helping make it memorable!

what i wore wednesday

2011-11-02T19:34:00.000-05:00

So, I have a sweet friend, Marla, who has a blog that I frequent. She writes about lots of great crafts and learning activities with her two girls, lots of baking projects, party ideas and just their life.

Last week, she wrote this post. It's all about a new thing called "What I Wore Wednesday." It's basically a challenge to women (and guys too, I suppose!) to get out of your pj's and put on clothes! Aren't we more productive and don't we feel better when we get ready and dressed for the day? I know I do! So, so often, I stay in my pajamas all day. (lest you forget, I'm a nurse, I work 3 days a week) I stay home most of the time. I have 16 days off a month. (did I mention that I love my job?) I'm a stay-at-home-but-work-a-little-to-stay-sane-mom.

Anyways, this is a challenge to dig in your closet, put together an outfit, get your makeup on and prepare for your day. Marla is doing more than one day, so you're welcome to. Here in the beginning, I have one for you.

Shirt - Old Navy

Tank - J. Crew

Jeans - The Gap

Shoes - Sperry's Bluefish 2-Eye Boat Shoe in Linen Oat

Perfume - Viva La Juicy by Juicy Couture (makes me feel put together)

So, not that fancy for my first "what i wore wednesday". I promise to get better.

Marla got this idea from a blog called The Pleated Poppy, which I'm now following. :)

You make your post, then link it up with Lindsey at The Pleated Poppy.

Pinterevolution

2011-10-17T22:49:00.001-05:00

I'm not sure if you've jumped on the pinterest wagon yet, or not, but if you haven't.... You should. Right after you read this. :)

You browse their pins, or pin your own ideas (images from websites, blogs, etc) onto boards. You can name your boards. Examples include: "Wedding plans", "Renovating the bathroom", "Halloween decor", "First birthday ideas" etc. Options are literally endless.

Don't get discouraged, though, when you go to get an account. It will tell you that you need an invite. And it may not send you an invite for up to 24 hours (so I've heard), I got my invite within an hour of requesting one (don't be jealous). I tell everyone about pinterest. I got my mom to do it, I convinced a coworker to get one last weekend (didn't take much, right Michelle?), I think I even sufficiently pushed the check out lady at Hobby Lobby today to start one.

You're going to be overwhelmed. There are so many ideas, extremely clever things you'll wish you'd thought of. It helps you find things from the internet (which is so much bigger than I'd ever imagined) that you probably would have never, ever found on your own.

Enough babble, let me show you what I accomplished today.

A few days ago, I saw (on pinterest) a tutorial for how to make babylegs. These are super cute, footless leggings for babies. They're genius. They protect knees while crawling, they make diaper changes so easy (legs covered, but no waist, zippers, buttons, snaps to deal with) and they're darn cute. But they run ya 12 bucks a pop! Anyways, I wanted to figure out how to make them myself, so, I typed "babylegs" into the search box on pinterest. Like a billion images popped up, but I clicked on one that said, "Baby legs tutorial; Easy!" or something like that, I can't remember, because I changed it when I repinned it. But it had this adorable picture to help sway my decision. Here's the original post.

{they cloth diaper, too!!}

So, I wanted to make some babylegs that Cohen could wear with his Halloween costume on Wednesday to the zoo. I found these socks at Target for $6.00. They're women's knee-high socks.

Fuzzy... kinda hard to work with.. But they match our costume.

Cut a straight line above and below the heel, and above the toe.

Fold each small piece over on itself, so the good (outer) sides are facing you.

Pull the folded piece around the bottom of the long sock. All three unfinished edges should be at the end. And you should only see the good sides.

See? Only good sides.

Stitch around the unfinished edges. I stitched about a 1/4 inch below the edges. I did a kind of loose stitch, I knew it would need to stretch a little.

After sewn, unfold! (it's the one on the left that I sewed. I sewed the right one too, but this is the manufactured end.)

Voila! Handmade baby legs! Can't wait to try these on Cohen for Halloween!

So, yes, that was my first pinterest project! Ready for my second? Ok!!

I saw this a few weeks ago, and when walking past the scrapbooking section at Hobby Lobby today, I decided, Today's the Day. It's a weekly, family calendar from, get this: a collage frame! Behold.

Clever right? It's dry erase because it's glass!

Anyhoo, here are my supplies.

A $12.00 collage frame from Wal*Mart and 8 pieces of scrapbooking paper that I got from a pack (of 36, double-sided) from Hobby Lobby for around $5. (with a 40% off coupon from their website)

Cut your pieces of paper to fit the size of your frames. Mine were 4x6in.

Remove the cardboard pieces and insert your papers. (easy, right?)

Taa-daa! Write on it with a dry erase marker! It can also hang up and down, like the inspiration post.

You can pick any patterns or colors..endless options!

Then hang it up in a central place! I LOVE it!

Are you already a member of pinterest? What have you made?? Please share!

9 months!

2011-10-13T22:21:00.000-05:00

This is the exact amount of time it took me to grow this child in my body. And this 9 months has gone by so, SO much faster than the other 9. The other 9 was me, anticipating this 9.

Oh, this baby. I try to take a lesson in Joy from him all the time. This sweet baby almost always has a smile (like above) plastered on his precious face. How can I, too, not forget my troubles and worries and just smile when I see this? It reminds me to rest in the Peace of the Lord. He is my reminder of love, joy, peace, patience... Children are such blessings... how can anyone argue that?

Ok, people. I tried really, really hard to take this month's Tonka picture. What I got were Cohen's attempts at escaping the frame. This first picture is the winner!

I love this, because it also shows where he's at developmentally! Pulling up and cruising along furniture!!

He never once sat by the truck for our traditional picture. :(

Always standing these days!

Goofy grin

If he notices the camera, he likes to come attack it!

Growth: Our boy is pretty big. :) But he's spot on, on the growth charts. He weighs 20 pounds 15.5 ounces (50th%). He is 29 3/4 inches tall (75th%). (That's 2'5.75"!) And his head circumference is 17.5 inches (25th%). He is wearing size 12-18 months in most things. Occasionally, I can fit him into 6-12. And things marked "9 months" (rare sizing) usually fit him. Pants have to be 12 month+, to accommodate his bum. :) But we don't mind.

Sleep: Cohen is doing pretty good in this department. He generally goes to bed at 9pm and wakes between 7:30-8:30 (or 9-10 when I'm not there...fishy, I know..). He no longer gets a bottle at night (Praise the Lord!). He wakes sometimes a few hours after he goes down, and needs his paci. But sometimes, he will fuss for a second, like he wants his paci, and will roll over and go back to sleep!! On a perfect day, he takes two naps, still. He naps for 1-2 hours about two hours after he wakes in the morning. Then he'll usually lay down again around 3 pm for an hour or so. If his morning nap was shorter, the afternoon nap will be longer, and vice versa.

Eating: He is still on infant formula. He gets 24-30 ounces a day. It is steadily decreasing as he is eating more solids. He holds his own bottle now, it's uber cute. Today, and I didn't take pictures, I made him a broccoli, cauliflower, pea and carrot puree with a cheese sauce (that I made!). And he liked it! He's never had peas! Or cauliflower. I'm glad he liked it. And I'm glad I know how to make a cheese sauce now! I also made a new fruit puree for him: mango and apple! This tasted yum-my. :) So, yesterday, we were at Burger King while waiting on another errand we were running, and Cohen was eye balling my chicken fries and french fries. I thought... he's 9 months old... eh, why not? So, I broke off a tiny piece of french fry, dusted and blew off all the salt I could, and let him pick it up and eat it. He made a face at first, but definitely wanted more! haha, a child after my own heart. I'm sure that, total, he only had one french fry, but it seemed like a lot. I also let him have little bites of chicken fry. Loved it. :)

Development: He is a champion crawler now. VERY fast. Especially if he's into something he knows he shouldn't be and is running from us. He's been crawling for 2 months now! Crazy! He pulls up on furniture and "cruises" along furniture now. He likes to walk while holding our hands, as long as he can stop occasionally to "dance, dance, dance" or "jumpy, jumpy." He likes to sit on his knees. Which I think is about the cutest position a baby can be in. Ever. He gives kisses all the time, sometimes without us prompting him! He likes the repeating sound game. He'll say, "Oooohh" and daddy will say, "Oooohh" then he'll say (louder) "Gaahhh" and daddy will say "Gaaahh" and so on and so forth. It can go on for quite some time. :) He says "dada", but no "mama". :( When he's upset, he babbles with the "b" sound and high pitched. It's cute, it's hard to remember that he's upset. We play "Pat-a-cake" and we're working on waving bye-bye and giving "high-five". Maybe by next month. :) He seems to be learning something new everyday. Such precious times.

Our decision to cloth diaper.

2011-10-05T20:55:00.000-05:00

A couple months ago, we made a sort of snap decision (haha.. pun intended) to start cloth diapering Cohen. He was 7 months old. I wish, so much, that some one had talked to me and convinced me to do this from the get-go.

Before I looked into it, I used to think, "Yuck.. peed on cloth with poop on it that I have to touch." That's not convenient, that's not fun. To be honest, I didn't really even think of cloth until our baby shower stash of diapers (which was quite large, actually) ran out around 5 months and we started to feel the burden of how expensive disposable diapers were.

We did this for several reasons. First, to save money. And it does! Since we bought our first big batch of diapers those couple months ago, we haven't had to buy a $40 box of disposables (which we would've certainly done once or twice by now.) I will not lie, it takes a pretty penny to get your diaper stash built up and to buy a few accessories you kind of need to cloth diaper. I'll go over the cost later. But once you buy 18-24 diapers, you are set and don't need buy anymore. I'll expand on that thought later, too. :)

Second, the environment! Landfills in American soil are 30% full of disposable diapers! It takes something like 200 years for a disposable diaper to decompose. (Now, who sat around and waited for that to happen, I don't know.) :) Despite popular belief, disposable diapers require 2x the amount of water to produce than it takes to wash your cloth diapers. It takes 3x as much energy to produce a disposable diaper. For every one baby using disposables, 1 ton of garbage is created (by the end of their diapering lifetime.) And last, and kind of disturbing.. 1 cup of crude oil is used to manufacture the plastic in one disposable diaper.
(these stats were found and cited here)

Third, our baby's bottom! We wanted something natural to be on Cohen's bottom. Babies who wear cloth experience less (if any!) diaper rashes. The cloth wicks away moisture, helping keep bottoms dry. We know what fabrics we're buying so, we can get all natural fibers that we know won't bother Cohen.

Fourth, they're incredibly cute. Who doesn't love a fluffy-bottomed baby? They are not your mother's cloth diapers. They are easy to use, come in many colors and styles, and are convenient. I was worried about the convenience issue, but they are made to be easy to use anywhere.

Time for some pictures!

We decided on BumGenius 4.0 one size pocket diapers. This means they have snaps that you can snap down to make them smaller, then the waist is also adjustable with snaps. There is also a hook/loop version (velcro) but we figured Cohen would finagle his way out of velcro easier than snaps. At the back right are gFlappers (more info later), bottom right are our cloth wipes and then there is a sample of Rockin' Green cloth diaper detergent.

These are part of the artist series and are just adorable. Otherwise, bumgenius are solid and super cute.

Cloth diapers should not go into your dryer, as it will ruin the elastic after a while. It is suggested to line dry them in the sunlight. The sun dries them quickly and also helps remove poopy stains. (I doubted the suns stain fighting abilities but am now 100% convinced!)

Cohen's first cloth diaper experience! Happy as a clam! Not uncomfortable to him in the least.

And just look at that booty! So fluffy and cute!

Here is my big bag, that came in the mail a few days after I got the sample. This is the start up kit with a bag of detergent, a scoop and "Shake it up," a powder to help keep odors at bay in your diaper pail and wet bags. It is made by a stay at home mom right here in Texas! It can be purchased here. You buy either "Classic, Soft, or Hard Rock" depending on your town's water type. We bought Hard Rock. It has worked like a charm so far--no stinkies here! This bundle is $24.95, plus shipping. But, they sell this in my local cloth shop, so I'll never have to pay shipping again. :) And one bag like the one pictured above there (The Nappy Shoppe) is $15.95.

This is a monkeydoodlez Tuck And Go. It's hook and loop closure. It is a cover, you simply lay your own inserts (the part that soaks up pee) inside and fix it to your very wiggly baby and go! (hence, "tuck and go") These are sized, meaning you buy it for the stage your baby is in currently.

You lay the inserts in that opening right there. Pretty easy. This cover is $14.95. Great value.

This is a standard AIO (All in one) monkeydoodlez diaper. It is sized diaper, also. It is hook/loop closure.

It's very, very simple to use. No stuffing required. I find myself grabbing this diaper when we are in a big hurry. It's a good one to keep in the diaper bag. This one is $19.25 over at the Nappy Shoppe.

This diaper. Oh, this diaper. I love it. It is a Sweet Pea OS (one size) pocket diaper. I just love the fit.

It is microfiber on the inside, so it is super soft on Cohen's bum. And the owls? Don't get me started. It's a great deal of a diaper too. At the Nappy Shoppe, it's $15.95. And this includes 2 inserts. A soaker insert and a smaller one. I have since gone back for a royal blue and turquoise sweet pea. Love it.

And these cuties are gDiapers. They look ridiculously cute on a baby bum. They have a snap in leak-proof liner. Then you stuff that liner with either a biodegradable disposable insert, or your own cloth inserts! Makes them great for trips! These are sized. We got larges for Cohen.

These two came together at Babies R Us, and cost $26.99. But the Nappy Shoppe sells individual gPants for $19.99.

This is Coco's Bummis swim diaper! No inserts needed. Did you know that disposable "swim diapers" don't really absorb pee? They soak up with water the minute they are submerged and might keep poop from escaping if they aren't too full of water. This diaper will hold poop if baby happens to do that in the pool. And it looks so cute! And baby doesn't need a swim suit with this one. $12.75 at the Nappy Shoppe.

And alas, my favorites. BumGenius 4.0 OS (one size) pocket diapers. So incredibly easy and real freakin' cute. These come with 2 inserts, a larger "toddler" one and a smaller "infant" one. We use both now. These are generally a little more expensive. But I bought two sets of these when they were buy 5 get 1 free. One is $17.95 at the Nappy Shoppe.

They're very soft inside. And oh-so-easy. And the designs and colors are to die for.

And these amazing inserts are called gFlappers. They're made at the Nappy Shoppe. They're amazing. It's a three layer insert, for tons of absorbency, but only sewn together on one end so it comes nice and clean in the washing machine. They're $7.85. I have 5. :) We use these at night. We use all bamboo, but they make them with hemp and bamboo. I'm nervous about the oils in hemp for Cohen's skin.

Also pictured way up at the top, Sweet Pea cotton wipes. These are $5.95 for 8. We wet those and use them instead of wipes.

You'll also need a wet bag for being out and about. I got mine at Planet Wise for either $16.50 or $19.00, I can't remember.

I also bought a pail liner from the Nappy Shoppe. It lines a standard kitchen trash can and you store used diapers in it until you're ready to wash. Mine is Wahmies brand and was $17.95.

We use flushable liners in our diapers. It's a thin, paper-like liner that lays in the diaper. Pee passes through and it catches poop! Then you lift it out and flush it away! Right now we're using TinyTush liners. These are usually less than $10 for a 100 of them.

I feel like that's all if it for now. But we've been cloth diapering for about 2 months and we still love it. I might do a part 2, later, but this is so long as is! Any questions? :)

Crock Pot Tuesdays

2011-09-29T16:31:00.000-05:00

This past Tuesday, we continued the tradition of Crock Pot Tuesday!! Yaay!

I asked hubby all day Monday what meat he wanted. Hours went by, he never told me. It came time to go to the grocery store, so I decided on chicken and found a recipe. He said, "Oh, I was hoping for something with steak in it..." Are you kidding me? Now you tell me?

I digress.

I decided on a chili recipe I saw on pinterest a couple days ago. It's a beef chili from Better Homes and Gardens dot com. You can find the recipe here.

(decided to lead with a picture of the finished dish, to get you excited!)

ingredients:

1 pound of round steak, cubed (3/4 inch), fat trimmed off

1 T cooking oil

2 cans diced tomatoes

1 can beef broth

1 C chopped onion

1-2 fresh chopped jalapeno peppers (I used a can of chopped green chiles)

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 t chili powder

1 T brown sugar

1 1/2 t dried oregano

1/2 t ground cumin

1/4 t black pepper

Brown the meat in the oil. No need to cook all the way.

Then, put tomatoes, broth, onions, chiles, spices and steak into crock pot on high for 5-6 hours (10-12 on low). (I did high for 6 hours and I stirred occasionally.)

On top here is a bean salad I made (it's on the website). It's one can of pinto beans (drained and rinsed) and one can of black beans (drained and rinsed) tossed with the zest and juice of two medium limes. I refrigerated the bean salad for a couple hours before eating.

We paired our chili with cheddar cheese, sour cream, tortilla chips and the bean salad, of course.

VERY GOOD!

The lime made the dish. Oh so delicious! It sort of turned out more like a soup, though. I think if I had added the beans in to cook (which you can totally do) it would have thickened up the mixture a lot. I would say this recipe made 6 servings. Pretty good deal.

Hey, I even had leftovers of it today. And I never eat leftovers. :)

Check out my kitchen helper:

I expect our energy bill to be a few cents higher this month. :)

Adventures in baby food making: Lamb casserole and Peach-pear-strawberry puree!

2011-09-29T15:55:00.000-05:00

I know what you're thinking. . . I know. "Lamb??? Who are these people?" :) But seriously, it was on sale with my Kroger card and Hector and I also got a meal out of it. Here goes.

1 lamb rib chop, trimmed of bone and fat and diced
2 scallions, thinly sliced
1 large sweet potato, peeled and chopped
1 medium tomato, peeled, seeded and chopped
pinch of dried rosemary or mixed herbs
1/2 cup unsalted chicken broth

*Can I just say that I wasn't thinking about how lamb is actually baby sheep, until I was reading Cohen a story that night and it went over all the names of animals and their babies..... 'nuff said.*

That's our unsalted broth there (we have to mix it up ourselves).

Chop it all and toss it in the casserole dish. Cover and bake at 350 for 15 minutes, then reduce to 300 degrees and bake for another 45 minutes or until lamb is tender.

Then puree. It also said for older babies you could just do a good chop of all of it, like a chunky soup. Well, Coco has no teeth yet, so that was a no for us.

He liked it! And wanted more. :)

Gotta get that sippy cup any way he can. Pure talent right there.

Picking up his puffs. He's so big!!

Nom nom nom!

So, it was pretty good. But, as for our lamb dinner (mine and Hector's) ((and he looked up a yummy rub recipe with brown sugar, ginger, garlic powder, etc)) we were not impressed. We probably will not buy [baby] lamb again. It had a different taste... made me think of... a baby lamb... crying. Or something like that. Regardless, lamb has B vitamins, iron and zinc. After 6 months, the store of iron that babies have from mama is gone. So they need a lot of supplemental iron.

I also made Cohen a new fruit dish. Peach-pear-strawberry puree.

Very pretty fruits!

I looked at my receipt and it said nectarines, instead of peaches. But they were in the peach bin... So, who really knows.

Cook in a sauce pan for a while. They'll make their own sauce. I recommend chopping the peach and pear into smaller pieces, it took a while for them to get real soft.

Very pretty color!

Baby liked it! But he did a little shiver every now and then... it was a little sour in a few places. :) But, pretty sweet overall.

This morning I warmed up a serving and added a couple scoops of oatmeal. It turned out delicious!

Adventures in baby food making: Chicken Puree!

2011-09-29T12:28:00.000-05:00

We went to Granna and Pop's house last week and got to make Cohen his first meal with chicken in it! This is big. Because I feel like chicken is a staple in our house. So, we want to get the boy to likin' chicken.

I flipped through my cook book and decided on one called "My first chicken puree."

ingredients:
1/4 cup washed and sliced white part of a leek
1 T vegetable oil
3 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into chunks
2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
2 medium carrots, peeled and sliced
2 plum tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and chopped
1 cup unsalted chicken broth

Saute the leek in the vegetable oil until softened. Then add the chicken and saute until it has sealed. Add the potatoes, carrots, and tomatoes and pour in the chicken stock. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Puree.

Pop holding Coco up for his first bite of chicken! He liked it! It was very smooth and creamy.

Cohen crawled up on Granna and Pop's fireplace, like it was no big deal. :( He would sidle up there and scratch his little hand on the metal screen.. he loved the sound it made. He even learned how to get OFF the fireplace without busting it. My big boy...

Mama and Coco :)

My wonderful parents with their little grandson.

Nice trip to Paris with a cool new meal under our belts! Can't wait to go back, we miss Granna and Pop a ton!

GR8!

2011-09-27T23:58:00.002-05:00

Yes, people... before the 13th of October rolls around, I should do Cohen's 8 month update! I know this.. and I've known it for the last two weeks.. But alas... here it is.

better late than never. right?

So, again, I wasn't home for the Tonka picture.. But Hector did a gr8 job this time! No pj's!

8 Months Old!

He's fascinated with wheels! So, he turns the Tonka truck over and spins the wheels. Very cute, in my opinion.

checking out those wheels!

that sweet baby face.. melts my heart.

Literally spinning the wheel. (Parks and Rec, anyone?)

baby boy, full of admiration for his Daddy.

Sleeping: I don't think Cohen will ever sleep all night. He was doing pretty good.. But now he's waking up multiple times a night. :( He takes two naps still. Those are nice. And sometimes at night, he wakes up around 5 am wanting a bottle. We live in an apartment, people. So, we can't let him cry like that at 5 am. So, we give in and give him a bottle. Because 5 am is entirely too early to be awake, if I'm not working.

Eating: LOTS of yummy things! :) He has about (4) 8 oz bottles of formula a day. And two meals, usually brunch time and dinner. I won't list things here, as you can read all about it here, here or here!

Activity: ACTIVE!!! 1 day after his 7 month birthday, he started crawling! Yes.. he's mobile! He mostly does this army crawl maneuver.. kind of on his elbows? Like he's having to go under a bunch of low beams or something? It's cute. And toys.. he likes them. But he also likes the tv remote, our iPhones, the laptop, or things hanging on the kitchen cart. It's alright... until you're trying to blog, and someone pops off the "L" key. o_O

Speech: Babbling all the time. "bah bah bah," "bla bla bla," "da da da," "mmmmmmm"

Teeth: None, but teething! I just know he's teething... He is chewing on his fingers a lot (and everything in his path) and drooling all over the place and being just plain cranky. We're using an amber teething necklace for Cohen, to try and ease his discomfort.

Amber is not a “stone” but a natural resin. So as it warms with the body’s natural temperature, amber releases its healing oils (these oils contain succinic acid )which are easily absorbed into the skin and then into the bloodstream. Baltic Amber has some of the highest concentrations of Succinic Acid found in nature, and this is what makes it so special. Succinic Acid is a natural component of plant and animal tissues, and it's presence in the human body is beneficial in many ways.

Most people say, "But can he get it in his mouth?" They're not for him to chew!! It's a topical comfort!

So far, I honestly believe it has helped cut down on crankiness. Lately, he's been fussy, but I think that he's about to cut a tooth. Surely. :)

He looks darn cute in it, huh?

We're just loving this phase! He gives kisses too! Big, open mouthed, slobbery kisses. We say, "Can mama have a kissie? Kissie for mama!" and he'll lean in and land a big wet one on my cheek. I just love it! We love you, Cohen Alexander! You make our lives so fun and rich.

Crock Pot Tuesdays and a new study

2011-09-13T22:55:00.000-05:00

This perfect Tuesday was spent cooking, playing with Cohen and studying scripture.

The girls in our community group are doing a study on Beth Moore's book To Live Is Christ. In our busy lives, we plan to meet just as girls twice a month. So, we're meeting tomorrow for the first time. I'm so excited to finally have a study to look forward to with them, I'm just giddy! I've been working straight weekends since June... meaning I've missed a lot of church. I've been once. On my birthday. Poor me, right? Well, the Lord provides. This book is a study of Paul's life and dedication to Christ. I can't wait to see how God uses this book to open my eyes to more of His plan for me.

My favorite verse, from today's reading:

⁴ Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. ⁵ Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. ⁶ These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. ⁷ Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. ⁸ Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. ⁹ Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.
----Deuteronomy 6:4-9

I wrote this out and hung it in our home. It's a convicting reminder of how we need to be teaching our children the Love of Christ and his laws any chance we get.

Now, for what you probably clicked on this blog for........ Crock Pot Tuesday!!!

I took a very plain recipe from the Crock Pot Girls facebook page for Carnitas.. It called for a pork roast and a jar of Herdez salsa verde. I'm not a HUGE fan of pork (besides bacon.. don't get me started) so, I meshed that recipe with some aspects from a recipe for brisket tacos I got from a super chef friend, Diedre. (<----And this chick can cook!)

Ingredients:
3-5 pound beef roast
2 small cans Herdez salsa verde
2 cloves of garlic
salt and pepper
cumin
chili powder
(I had beef stock on hand in case it got dry, but the beef produced its own beautiful stock)

My roast was just over 3 pounds.

con toda confianza: "with confidence" found in the Hispanic aisle near chipotle peppers and mole sauce

Rub the meat with salt and pepper, then the cumin and chili powder. Rub it good.

Sear in in a hot pan, just for a second, to seal in the flavors. You can use any pan, I used a cast iron Dutch oven with a little canola oil in the bottom.

I poured one can of salsa in the bottom, placed the roast over that, rubbed in some minced garlic, then poured on another can of salsa. Close up shop. Sit on low for 6-7 hours.

Are you ready for the reveal? OK.. here it is:

I let my hubby pull it apart, then I drizzled the leftover sauce onto it.

Hector, in case you didn't know, is originally from Mexico. With that, comes a wealth of knowledge of Mexican cuisine. To go along with our tacos, he made his famous arroz Mexicano, frijoles negros and a salsa roja con chile de arbol. Now, who can translate all that? Go ahead, make my day!

Our other sides included queso fresco, avocado slices and lime.

Can I just say, we gave taco stands a run for their money. (At least on their brisket tacos, my husband sweetly added.) He's a long time fan of taco stands.

I was thrilled with this dish. Absolutely thrilled. I seriously hope someone reads this, tries it and tells me how amazing it is. The meat was so tender, so flavorful... Make sure to use little corn tortillas, like a taco stand. Heat them in a little skillet, on both sides, no oil. Crumble queso fresco on top. I added avocado slices and black beans to my tacos. Hector added his salsa. Oh, and squeeze some lime juice in there.. you won't regret it!

I will make this again, and I won't change a thing. Unless you guys make some awesome suggestion to me. :)

So this brings an end to another Crock Pot Tuesday!

While we were eating [delicious] tacos, Cohen was in his high chair eating chunks of banana and avocado! Yes, chunks!

He got very frustrated because the banana got slippery in his hands and he couldn't get it into his mouth. But he managed to eat all that banana and then some more I cut up. Plus the avocado, not even pictured!

I think he likes feeding himself! (mama is the one who isn't ready for that!)

Today is Cohen's 8 month birthday! I'm going to do his update tomorrow. :) Thanks for reading!

Ok ok.. new name, old address

2011-09-10T12:01:00.000-05:00

So, I changed the name of our blog to "the chronicles of us" and I also changed the address, but no one could seem to find it. So, it's back to http://growingmirandas.blogspot.com/ Maybe now my followers can actually read my posts! :) Happy blogging!

Crock Pot Tuesdays

2011-09-09T00:07:00.000-05:00

I'm a nurse. I work with a bunch of women. Seriously, no male nurses. :) I LOVE this about my job.

So, we talk about lots of womanly things. Shopping, our kids/family, and food. And on our unit, we will find any excuse to have a pot-luck party at work. Oh, the Mavs are in the playoffs? LUNCH PARTY. International Day? Mexican fiesta!! Father's Day? Sweets n' Treats! End of summer? BBQ!!!

So, with all these opportunities to bring in food, it brings about lots of discussion of recipes. One day (our Labor Day Soup and Salad luncheon day, in fact), while discussing recipes, a friend said to me, "Emily..have you joined Crock Pot Girls yet??" Interest piqued. "Crock pot girls?? No.. what's that?" She then proceeded to blow my mind with all that is Crock Pot Girls. They also have a Facebook. :)

This is an amazing website, started by girlfriends, with tons of recipes to be made in a crock pot. Now, I have a crock pot. And up until now, my extent of adventurousness with the crock pot has been: Chicken Taco Soup and French Dip Sandwiches. Yea... pretty boring.

You hereby have my vow, that I will try a new recipe in my crock pot every week. On Tuesdays, to be exact. The girls on the website coined the term Crock Pot Mondays. Monday's are just not good for us. Hector has Club for YoungLife and will usually be eating there. And I don't want to make a crock pot meal for just me to eat. So, this past Tuesday, I started out with a meal recommended by my friend Laurie from work. She'd made it for her husband and daughter and said it turned out VERY well. I even went as far as to make the same sides as her. Thanks, Laurie! Great idea!

Creamy Italian Chicken (find it here)
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (frozen) ((I used 6 breast tenders)) (((it's what I had)))
1 package of cream cheese, softened to room temperature
1 can Cream of Chicken soup
1 packet dry Italian seasoning

Place chicken on bottom of crock pot. They recommend using a roasting bag. (I've never heard of such.) In a separate bowl, combine the softened cream cheese, soup and Italian seasoning. Pour over chicken. Cook on low heat for 6-8 hours. I also added a splash of white wine (probably about 1/2 a cup). I opened it up and lightly stirred it a couple times. I put it all in at 12:30, low setting, and we were eating by 6:30.

Chicken on the bottom.

Other three ingredients in a bowl.

Smear over chicken. 6 hours on low.

I served ours over steamed brown rice with steamed broccoli.

This was amazing. The chicken was practically falling apart. So glad I went with something that was 1) easy and 2) recommended. I knew it should taste good, you can hardly mess it up. And the brown rice was so good! We definitely both made "happy plates."

Can't wait for next Tuesday!!

Adventures in baby food making: Apricots with pear!

2011-09-08T22:13:00.001-05:00

I like to try to make one fruit dish for each veggie dish I do. Babies need a variety, just like we do.

I will say, this recipe called for papaya, not pears, but 1) we'd just eaten papaya and 2) Central Market didn't have any papaya (!?). So, I decided on pear. Because I knew he'd liked pears several weeks ago.

So, I'll just list my edited recipe here.
ingredients:
1 C dried apricots, chopped
enough water to cover the apricots
2 Bosc pears
4 ounces firm tofu

Boil the apricots for about 5 minutes, covered, until tender. Roughly chop the pears then steam them in water for about 20-25 minutes. Peel them. Put pear chunks, apricots and chopped tofu into food processor. Puree until smooth. Add cooking liquid as needed.

Lens kept fogging up!

Ok. I don't regularly buy tofu.. the recipe really called for soft tofu. But this was the only organic one...so, I got firm. Apparently soft tofu is more like a cream, good for smoothies and such. Oh well.

Made a pretty parfait in the processor. Pears, apricots, tofu.

A perfect consistency.

And into the tray. (Look at that sweet baby on the floor!)

Hector was working on a project outside, so I didn't get any pictures of Coco trying this one. But he really liked it!

Tofu is rich in protein, calcium, iron and potassium. It can help protect against some types of heart disease and cancer. Dried apricots are a great high-energy snack. Note to self: don't feed to Cohen too close to bedtime.

Adventures in baby food making: Carrot puree with lentils and cheese!

2011-09-08T21:49:00.000-05:00

All out of the beef stew, I hit the books (OK.. one book) to find a new, exciting recipe for the little. I try to pick new recipes based on two criteria: does it sound good to me? and, will it offer Cohen a new ingredient, that is also nutritional for him?

I landed on: Carrot puree with lentils and cheese.
ingredients:
1/2 C finely chopped onion
1 1/2 t vegetable oil
2 T red lentils
3 medium carrots, peeled and sliced
1 1/2 C boiling water
1 T unsalted butter
2 tomatoes, peeled, seeded and roughly chopped
1/2 C grated Cheddar cheese

**I did use three carrots, but only pictured two; somehow I missed the "red" in the lentil description and bought white(?) lentils

Saute onion in oil 3-4 minutes until softened. Rinse and drain lentils, add to onion. Add carrots and boiling water. Cover and cook for 25 minutes over medium heat.

Melt butter in separate sauce pan, saute tomato until mushy, add Cheddar cheese.

Drain carrot and lentil mixture and reserve cooking liquid. Combine carrot and lentil mixture with tomato and cheese mixture. Add 1/2 C cooking liquid. Puree.

He wasn't sure about the first couple bites...

But then he finished his serving with a smile! And I even gave him another serving!

What really happened:

-I would use a bigger tomato next time.. like on-the-vine tomatoes. After I Hector seeded the tomato, there didn't seem to be much tomato left to cook with!

-White lentils worked fine... who knew there was more than one kind??

-I had to add nearly 2 more cups of water to the carrot/lentil mixture after 25 minutes AND cook for 20-25 minutes longer! The cooking fluid was completely absorbed by twenty-five minutes. And, I would've stopped here and started blending, but Hector tasted the lentils and said they were still very hard. So, back on the heat for another 25.

All in all, a great recipe for Coco. And bonus! Lentils are a great source of protein and fiber. Also, they are a rich source of potassium, zinc and folic acid. I find myself doing diaper laundry a little more than usual, thanks to the fiber, I'm thinking. :)

CD buddies

2011-09-06T00:03:00.000-05:00

This is another play date, that I haven't had time to post! But at least this one was only a couple weeks ago, for real. Right before we went on vacation. So, I have an excuse.

I have this friend, Amber, who I went to high school with. We became friends when we were on the drill team together. Yes, my friends, I was on drill team.. in case I ~~haven't~~ forgot to mention that at some point. It. Was. Fun. Anyways, I did that freshman and sophomore years, then decided to quit. I know, quitter. But I quit drill team to involve myself in something much more useful. Home Economics! I ran for office and was elected to [some office, I'd have to pull out the yearbooks to remember] and who else was an officer? Amber! She graduated a year before me, but we were friends all during high school. Then she went off to school somewhere...right? Anyways, I went to university a year later and guess who also lived in my town and went to the other university in town? Amber! So, we hung out a few times then. A few years go by and we are friends on Facebook. Well, I get pregnant right? And announce it on Facebook last summer. Then who do you think announced her pregnancy that fall? Amber! haha. I know this has entertained you, but I just wanted to explain how we know each other.

So, in April (right, Amber?) E was born! He's just adorable and so, so sweet. I hadn't gotten to meet him (or see Amber) so, we planned a visit. It was so great! Here is E, with Cohen on the couch.

He's obviously a lot smaller than Coco at this point. Still a newborn, practically! So sweet!

And here are there fluffy bums!!

CD, in case you were wondering, is the abbreviation for cloth diaper. I am writing a whole post about cloth diapers... so, come back for that, I won't get into all the glorious details right now.

I'm hoping to see Amber and E again in a few weeks! It will be fun when E can crawl and play with Cohen! But I don't want to rush his growth... I know I sure miss Cohen's newborn days!

What a fun evening! Thanks for letting me come over, Amber!

A post I never got around to! Sorry, girlfriends!

2011-09-05T23:43:00.000-05:00

I have two great friends at work, Sara and Denise. We all worked on nights and were all pregnant at the same time. So, naturally, we bonded over pregnancy, then deliveries, then newborn stages and now on the every day antics of our nearing-one-year-olds.

Denise delivered first, in November, a precious baby girl, E. Then Sara had M in the first week of December. Then, of course, Cohen came along the second week of January.

A couple ~~weeks~~ months ago, we got the kids together, finally(!) for a play date! We met at Sara's house and just played for a few hours! E and M were already crawling.. poor Cohen was stationary on the floor. He got trampled on a couple times. But he's tough. I only took a few pictures.. moving babies are even harder to capture in a picture!

M plowing over Cohen. To get into my lap..what a sweetie!

"Hey where is she going? And how...?"

Lots of new toys to choose from!

Miss E! She loves cameras!

Trying to get a couch picture.... E is claiming Cohen as hers, and M is pulling Coco's hair. :)

Doesn't she look like she's heading for trouble?? :)

Those baby blues! Precious!

Play dates are so fun! It's great for Cohen to interact with other babies, since he does not go to day care. And, after all, these are his girlfriends. :) At least E is, I think M has a bunch of boyfriends already. ;) Us moms can plan that out, right?

Can't wait until next time!

Drum roll please...

2011-09-05T23:22:00.000-05:00

Ladies and Gentlemen......

I think we may have a future drummer on our hands!

Daddy let's him play with his sticks and the boy is a natural!

He rocked so hard, he threw a drumstick.. you know how it is..

But he's still my sweet, silly boy... He likes to roll under here and giggle at the underside of his jumper. :)

It must have been twilight in these next pictures...

Yes, he crawls and tries to climb on things. It takes up most of our day now. :)

He came and attacked that camera once he realized the paparazzi was in the house!

Adventures in baby food making: Beef Stew!

2011-09-05T23:07:00.000-05:00

This was a delicious meal for Cohen! He really loved this one. And it made me and Hector really want to eat better...like home cooked meals. :) It was so easy, just took a little time.

Braised beef with carrot, parsnip, and sweet potato, the real name given in the book
1 T olive oil
1 small red onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
4 1/2 ounces lean beef, cut into pieces
2 T all-purpose flour
2 medium carrots, peeled and sliced
1 small parsnip, peeled and chopped (what is a parsnip?? am I right??)
1 medium sweet potato, peeled and chopped
1 bay leaf
1 T chopped fresh parsley
1 1/2 cups unsalted chicken broth

Heat olive oil in heavy-bottomed saucepan. Saute the onion and garlic for 3 to 4 minutes or until softened. Toss the beef in flour and saute until sealed. Add the carrots, parsnip, sweet potato, bay leaf and parsley to the pan and pour in the stock. Bring to a boil and then simmer for about 1 hour 45 minutes or until the meat is tender. Blend, adding as much of the cooking liquid as necessary.

The ingredients. That white carrot? That's a parsnip. Who knew?

Even at Central Market, no unsalted chicken stock. So we found sodium free bouillon that I turned into a broth. :)

Here, the meat is added, after sauteing the onion and garlic. We got a good sirloin steak from CM.

Hector's awesome knife skills!

YUM. Pretty sure we ended up adding an extra cup or two of the chicken broth.

After the pureeing. And into the silicone trays.

Why the color variation between these two pics? I don't know. But it looked a lot like carrots. :)

Ignore me, I don't quite know how to edit me out yet. :) First bite!

"Ehhh... I've had better..."

Beef is a totally new taste for him.

We share some of the same facial expressions... :P

Maybe it's ok...

"Aaaanndd... how do I get this thing open?"

So, this was a great dish and it accomplished it's purpose. Introducing Cohen to new flavors. And by the 11th time he had this.. he LIKED it. :)

Also this night, we tried pureed peaches. I just scored and "x" in the skin on the bottom of the fruit with a paring knife and dropped it in a pot of boiling water for a couple minutes.. to blanch it. Then peeled it and took out the seed and threw it in the food processor. I pureed it and tasted it... SOUR! So, I added a tablespoon of sugar. Better, but still a little tart. I just KNEW these peaches would be sweet.. nope.

Couldn't care less about the peaches I prepared for him. :(

But look at those cheeks... :)

I am enjoying making Cohen's food so much. It brings me such peace knowing exactly what is in the food he eats. I highly recommend trying to make your own baby food. You will feel so accomplished when you spoon your own homemade, heartfelt meals into your little one's mouth--and they like it! I'd rather give him something fresh any day, than give him something vacuum-sealed that expires two years from now. Yuck. Our food doesn't last that long, why (how??) should his?

Do you have any great baby food recipes? Please share!

Our new name

2011-08-24T12:55:00.000-05:00

I'm doing some tweeking on the blog (in case you haven't noticed).

I'm trying to make it more reader-friendly, more true to us, and more functional.

Our new name is "the chronicles of us." You won't see "The Growing Mirandas" on your reading list anymore.

Our new address is http://thesechroniclesofours.blogspot.com.

I'm so glad you're here and I can't wait to continue this journey with you through the blogosphere.
:)

Lucky number 7

2011-08-23T00:24:00.000-05:00

Somehow or another, over half a year has gone by since my teeny, tiny baby boy was born. Yes, friends, my 8 pound 12.4 ounce, sleepy newborn is now a chubby, funny, very active 7 month old!

When we started the Tonka pictures, Cohen couldn't even sit up (obviously..he was one month old!).

(we just slipped our hand out of this picture for a split second to snap the shot) All eyes on daddy!

7 Months

And now he wants to play with the truck. :) Such a little boy.

And this is his camera smile. Scrunched up nose and all.

Some of our other attempts:

And, quite possibly the most precious face you'll ever see?

Eating: I won't bore you with this.. as it's detailed in my "Adventures of baby food making" blogs. So, solids plus formula. He gets a 6 ounce bottle 4-5 times a day (depending on when he wakes, how much solid food he eats, when he goes to sleep, etc).

Sleeping: He is finally sleeping all night. He usually goes to bed around 9 pm. I love this time, because I always get to put him to bed. Occasionally he will wake around 4-5 and cry until he gets a bottle, then go back to bed. Otherwise, he sleeps until 8 o'clock when I'm home, or 9-10 when it's just him and Hector. (??) Now, sometimes we have that "off" night.. and he'll stay up until midnight... those nights/following days are rough. His naps are amazing, when they're done properly. He will take a 2 hour nap in the morning, then an hour-hour and half nap in the afternoon. :) He sometimes gets tired around 5, but if Hector lets him nap, for even 30 minutes, those are often the "off" nights.

Development: Into everything! He isn't crawling yet, but he still rolls to get where he wants to go. He sits up for long periods of time. He loves to push buttons.. literally! He gets the remote, the laptop, our phones, Hector's x-box remotes, and his musical/sound toys and pushes all the buttons, over and over again. He takes baths in our tub now! He sits in there all by himself (one of us is always right by the tub) and plays with all of our bath time toys!

Growth: Big! We forgot to step on the scale with him this month. :( But, I assure you, he's growing up nice and big.

the chronicles of us

Insta-Friday

What's Cookin' Wednesday *Bonus Recipe*

What's Cookin' Wednesday

Super Bowl Sunday!

Play Date!

Insta-Friday

Baby boy is 12 months old!

What's Cookin' Wednesday *Bonus Recipe*

What's Cookin' Wednesday

NEW FLUFF!

Quadruple Date

What's Cookin' Wednesday

Winter ONEderland Party-Goers!

Cohen's Winter ONEderland 1st Birthday

Wrapping up Christmas

Christmas Eve!!

11 Months, so soon??

Soda Can Cupcakes

S'More Pie, this is not a joke

what i wore wednesday

Fall/Christmas Wreath

Hosting Thanksgiving

Ten Months!

Preview of Thanksgiving!

what i wore wednesday: embracing fall!

Adventures in baby food making: Pasta with hidden veggies

Crock Pot Tuesdays

Painting with Pinterest

Trick or Treat!!

what i wore wednesday

Pinterevolution

9 months!

Our decision to cloth diaper.

Crock Pot Tuesdays

Adventures in baby food making: Lamb casserole and Peach-pear-strawberry puree!

Adventures in baby food making: Chicken Puree!

GR8!

Crock Pot Tuesdays and a new study

Ok ok.. new name, old address

Crock Pot Tuesdays

Adventures in baby food making: Apricots with pear!

Adventures in baby food making: Carrot puree with lentils and cheese!

CD buddies

A post I never got around to! Sorry, girlfriends!

Drum roll please...

Adventures in baby food making: Beef Stew!

Our new name

Lucky number 7

What's Cookin' Wednesday Bonus Recipe

What's Cookin' Wednesday Bonus Recipe