Happy Birthday Week Kenwood!!!

My precious angel is turning TWO this week!  I cannot believe he has been here for two whole years and at the same time I feel like he has always been a part of our lives!  For those of you who don't know the whole story behind our little miracle baby, I'll give you a brief overview:

Dillon and I got married February 2008...on our wedding night we VOWED we were waiting FIVE years until we started a family.  Well, God had a plan far bigger than we could have imagined and FIVE WEEKS after our wedding day, we had a positive pregnancy test! Well, well, well.

In April 2008 we announced the news to our families...my dad had made the comment that "this baby is a blessing, it's the circle of life guys, when God takes a life he brings in a new one."--This was supposed to be directed toward the recent loss of Dillon's grandfather...but again, God's plans were much larger than we could imagine.

In May 2008 my Grammy passed away...a few days later, my precious Daddy(who was my best friend) was diagnosed with Pancreatic Cancer and given only a few months to live.  So, needless to say this precious little baby that was in my belly was a blessing in disguise and our sole reason to go on living with a positive attitude towards our future....it was a very stressful and emotional 9months!!

On December 4th, 2008 our little blessing, Kenwood, graced us with his presence.  A presence that we all knew would have to fill a hole that would inevitably left in our hearts in the near future.  On December 11, one week to the day after Kenwood was born, God took my Daddy to Heaven.

A year in review:

 Kenwood's First Birthday

 One year photos

 February 2010

 Easter 2010

 Kenwood's gonna be a BIG BROTHER!

 Summer 2010

 Always a good eater!

 Fall 2010

 Fall 2010

Kenwood at Two Years:

Favorite Food-Hot Dogs, Spaghetti

Favorite Shows-Mickey Mouse, Dino Dan

Favorite Toys-Figurines, he loves all of Dillon's old plastic cowboys and horses

Favorite Animals- DOG, Horse, Dinosaurs

He says his prayers every night, and the first thing he thanks Jesus for is his dog...then Daddy...and sometimes we'll get lucky and Mommy will get in his list of Thanks!

Favorite Book- Dinosaur Numbers, Counting with Elmo

Favorite Place to go- School or Church....or of course Zeezi's house and Mimi&DonDon's house

Words he uses everyday- Dog, No, Eat, Mick (aka Mickey Mouse), RAAAAR, Saur (dinosaur), Coke(aka drink), Cars, Night Night

I am amazed everyday by the grace of God and by his divine presence in our lives.  He has plans for us that we may never understand but He has a purpose for everything.  I am so thankful that He chose me to be Kenwood's mother...this sweet little boy has made Dillon's and my life complete.

Thanks be to God!

I wish I could blog about all the things I was thankful for more often than around the holiday season and sporadically throughout the year.  But, I know you all don't really want to hear it over and over again. However I am going to do it now...it is Thanksgiving Eve after all!!  Dillon and  I sat down the other night on a "date night" not knowing where to eat on our night off and finally settling at a Chinese Buffet....yes, you read that right.  No, it was not that good.  Yes, we regretted our decision immediately when we walked in the door.  Yes, we still ate like pigs....a pregnant pig for me :)  Anyway, we sat there stuffing our faces and lovingly gazing into eachother's eyes (Ok...not mushy like that we are not that cheesy) and talking about if we had the chance to go back in time what would we change. Dillon's answer was proudly "That you and Will Francis would have decided to go to the Tri-Delt formal instead of the SAE/PiKap Swamp Party" (This was obviously a sarcastic remark because Dillon and I met at this so-called Swamp Party and had it not been for me taking an SAE to my date party, we would have never decided to ditch the formal and go to the much more casual, much more swampy, and much more fun party...that I would inevitably meet my future husband at).

Anyways, beside the point of the multi-story telling...we both sat there in awe of the fact that our lives had turned out to be far more than we could have ever imagined.  I have a husband that I could only dream of--that makes me laugh, takes care of me, teases me, loves me, worries about me, a husband that is such a wonderful reminder that most girls will marry a man like her father. And, I see everyday that Dillon is a father that Kenwood will strive to be and that Olivia will want his characteristics in her future husband one day as well.  There is not a single thing I would change about my past, because I couldn't bear the thought of not ending up exactly where I am.  I am so beyond blessed that I cannot even put it into words.  Well, there is my cheesy, mushy, thankfulness speech for the holiday :)  Hope it didn't bore you too much!!!

Crib Project: Part1 Complete!

Part 1: Crib Skirt-COMPLETE!!

I worked all day on Olivia's bedding today! We moved Kenwood's toys upstairs and I got out plenty of stickers and "crafty" stuff for him to do while I worked on the sewing machine.  It was actually a pretty productive day!!!  I am not using a pattern for any of the bedding, just kind of taking measurements and working from there.  I finally taught myself how to sew a ruffle (for the bumpers) the other day which took me SEVERAL different tries and about 3 different techniques.  Of course, the easiest was the last one I tried!  So, I mastered the ruffles and finished those today as well as pre-washed the "fabric"/blankets for the bumpers.  Once I mastered the ruffles, I moved on to the crib skirt...same "ruffle" technique in a much larger scheme!  BUT...it turned out BEAUTIFULLY!! I am so proud of myself :)  Here is a sneak peek at the crib skirt...bumpers are next on the list!

Finished skirt close up....

  No mattress yet, so I had to lay down a blanket to get a better idea of how it will look...

  I am sooo excited!

Christmas Decorating!

I am getting SO excited to decorate for Christmas this year in our new house!! This will be our first year to have Santa visit and do stockings and Christmas morning with just our little family.  Kenwood is slowly starting to get the idea of Santa, so I'm really looking forward to this with him!  My mother-in-law has come up every year to help decorate the house for Christmas, which is nice because 2 out of the 3 Christmases I've been pregnant! (This is the 3rd)  Last year I made some burlap pillows to go with the decor....I have a TON of burlap leftover (but it's super duper cheap anyway).  Maybe if I can get Olivia's bedding completed, I'll move on to some holiday stuff!! If I have time this year, I'd LOVE to make these:

I lost the pillow covers I made last year in the move...and they had red writing...this year we have a lot of black and wrought iron in the house, so I love the shabby chic black that still is kinda Christmas-y

How adorable are these?!  Burlap is sooo durable and strong that it's an excellent choice for stockings to hold heavy stuff and hang!  I love the little ruffles too, adds a little feminity...maybe I could do 2 without ruffles and have 2 boy stockings and 2 girl stockings and take them to get monogrammed!

I am OBSESSED with this table runner.  And, it looks SO easy! We have a very rustic dining room table and this is rustic yet dresses it up a bit so we can still eat on our Christmas china and it not look too formal for our rustic table.

I'll let yall know if I get to these projects this year...it's a busy one thats for sure! But, hopefully I will--I think these are all just darling!

BBQ Chicken/PepperJack Croissants

I made this delicious recipe last night!!! They were so good, super easy, and fairly healthy. Plus they were very filling so we have plenty of leftovers.

-2 cans of reduced fat crescent rolls
-2 chicken breasts or 6 chicken breast tenderloins
-BBQ sauce
-reduced fat sliced pepperjack cheese

1. Boil chicken until cooked thoroughly or shreds easily with a fork, season water with salt and pepper
2. In a separate bowl, shred chicken and stir in about 1 cup BBQ sauce, salt and pepper to taste
3. Separate crescents into triangles and spread some of the chicken out over the widest part.
4. Cut cheese squares in half into two triangles and arrange one triangle on widest end of crescent.
5. Roll up tucking sides in as best you can to keep filling in (they will leak a bit even when you tuck sides).
6. Bake 11-13 minutes at 425* or until golden brown.

An Emotional Rollercoaster

As my last trimester starts, I have about a million emotions running through me!!  Maybe it's the hormones, but I think it's mostly just the holiday season and the anticipation of another precious angel making our family complete.  I sat down today to start Olivia's bedding and just sat there crying and ironing the fabric....  I am missing my Daddy ALOT these days...I miss him everyday, but lately it's just been hitting me like a load of bricks every once in awhile.  I just sit here and wonder what he thinks of his little grandson that will be TWO in less than 3 weeks, I wonder what sort of activities they would do together, I wonder what he would say about our new house, and how he would feel about another granddaughter to sweep him off his feet....and I know he's looking down on us all right now and telling me not to cry and not to dwell on the fact that I don't know the answers to these questions.  And he's laughing.  Laughing at my emotional state and teasing me about not worrying about the things I can't change.  And he's telling me to put every ounce of my TRUST in God because His will is stronger than any planning I can do to prepare for the unknown of our future.  So, I calm down and pray.  Prayers of thankfulness for a healthy, happy family and thankfulness for the things in our future that I cannot plan for and thankfulness for the memories I have and the life I was given.  'Tis the season to be thankful and grateful!!

1 Chronicles 16:34
"Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever"

Baby Bump-27 weeks

Getting ready to start the "bedding project"

Baked Potato Soup and Grilled Cheese

What's on the menu tonight?  It was going to be leftover Hideaway Pizza that we ordered WAY too much of last night....but then Kenwood and I ate it for lunch instead :)  Since I have a sick little boy today, my grocery shopping will have to get done tonight when Dillon gets home from work to watch my munchkin! So, an easy dinner tonight is definitely what needs to happen!  I got this Baked Potato Soup recipe from one of the mom's in my Bible Study--Thanks Alli Black!  I am soooo looking forward to this comfort food tonight--its rainy and cold out!  We'll be having this along side some good 'ol classic grilled cheeses :)

- 1 bag Ore Ida Steam and Mash Potatoes (Regular Flavor- Cut Russet Potatoes--In freezer section near fries)

- 1/4 cup real bacon bits or crumbled bacon (I am going to use microwave bacon...not feeling very "Martha Stewart" tonight)

- 2 to 3 cups milk (more or less milk depending on how thick or thin you like it)

- 3 tablespoons light butter or margerine

- Shredded cheese

- sliced green onions (about 5) --I'll also be leaving these out due to a few "no onions" tastebuds in my house

- salt and pepper

1. Cook potatoes for 10 minutes in microwave as directed on bag

2. Dump cooked potatoes into a large bowl and add bacon bits, milk and butter, salt and pepper to taste. Mash with a potato masher or fork and stir thoroughly. 

3. Cook another 3-4 minutes in microwave adding more milk if necessary to thin out soup, stirring when necessary.

4. Top with shredded cheese and green onions. (a little sour cream is good too)

The Crib Bedding Adventure.....

First of all, I cannot even begin to express the difficulty I've had picking out bedding for Olivia...You all know because I've ranted and raved about it in several different blog posts.  Sorry about my ever-changing mind!!  WELL...we finally made a FIRM decision after going to pick out fabrics at Room 2 Dream and then being completely overwhelmed with the choices and we didn't even find anything we liked that much.  I've been on a roller coaster ride about what to do, but the decision was finally to go on the "Neutral, plush, soft" route.  I also decided to make it myself to save some money, I've made several sets of pillows and curtains so bumpers and a crib skirt shouldn't be too far off my comfort level!  I'm sure you all will hear all about my adventures in crib bedding!  With that said, we knew we wanted some sort of "minky" fabric on the bumper....then we decided we wanted it in a neutral color but still feminine.  I looked EVERYWHERE for just the right fabric and got NOWHERE.  I ordered swatches online, I went to fabric stores, I did it all and didn't LOVE any of my choices.  Then it came to me.....I could use a "minky"/"faux fur"/"super soft" blanket as my fabric!!! Brilliance, I tell ya.  Brilliance. I found this DARLING blanket online for....wait for it....75% OFF!!!! It's a 50x70 which is approximately 2yards for 1 blanket! Um, heck yes.  I was a little nervous because I've been so picky, but I ordered it at a Department store website so I knew I could take it back if I hated it (like I had hated everything else I'd seen).  Well, it came in today and I'M OBSESSED.  It's EXACTLY what I had pictured!!!!  Best part?  I got 2 blankets and a matching pillow for a ridiculously low price and I don't even think I'll need to use the second blanket for fabric! I am just beyond excited to start this project now!!!  AHHHH  Here are some pics of the fabric/blanket that will be the entire bumper:

Did I mention the darling "Rose" emboss it has?  I was so worried the neutral color wouldn't be feminine, so this is PERFECT! And how easy to clean?! It's a machine washable blanket, and I can spot clean with BLEACH because it's white! yaaahhoooo plus it's super duper SOFT!!

Close up of the fabric...it looks kinda dirty but thats just the shadow of the chenille

 Just a matching pillow so I don't have to sew it myself :)

I'll add satin/silk ruffles and ties to the bumpers with a satin/silk bedskirt.  Which I'll hopefully go pick out tomorrow!!  I'm going to try to find a really light champagne color for the satin/silk....

Here goes nothing! 

Freedom of the Yard

YAY!!! Our fence finally went in today! Even though we are still waiting on a few parts, it's a functional fence so we can play in the backyard without running after Kenwood into the water and without having our precious Owen on a leash!!  Poor Owen has been sitting at the back door 24/7 gazing out wishing he could run and play without being on a leash...it's really been the saddest thing EVER!!!!  So, tonight we made our debut in a fenced backyard and had some fun!! It was a BEAUTIFUL night!!

Kenwood was so excited he started dancing...

  Doing his little dancin' jig

 Danced so hard he was SOOO THIRSTY!

 Kenwood's first dinner on the back porch!

 Owen has longed for freedom of the yard for a few weeks now....he's excited!

Adventures in Cooking-"DUMP soup"....hahahaha

What's on the menu tonight?!  Yummy, easy stew with cornbread!  Perfect for a November night indoors with my boys!

"Dump Soup"--not the most appetizing, but it's called this b/c you LITERALLY just dump everything in together

1 can Rotel
2 cans Minestrone
2 cans Ranch Style Beans (I only use 1 can b/c my hubby doesn't really like beans)
1 8oz jar Cheez Whiz
1 lb ground beef or ground turkey
1 bag shell pasta (optional)


Brown ground beef and drain.  (Also, cook and drain pasta if you opt for this addition) Dump all ingredients into pot (or you can use a crock pot and slow cook) until melted and hot.  READY TO SERVE!!!!

We are having this tonight with cornbread! The minestrone and rotel give you plenty of good veggies, and the beans and ground beef (or turkey) give you a good healthy protein!

Season Greetings

I know, I know we haven't even had Thanksgiving yet! Nevertheless, I am in major mode for Christmas! YAY!!!! Dillon says he won't get the Christmas boxes down from the attic until the week of Thanksgiving (bah-humbug), but I'm decorating in my mind!  I'm also getting things in order for  Christmas cards! YAY!!!  As you all have read, I've been LOVING doing digital work for people for cards, invitations, and mailouts (I actually just ordered Kenwood's birthday/Holiday party invites)--Thank you OU Gaylord College of Journalism for my Photoshop skills, that is one of the things I actually learned and REMEMBERED in college! :) Here are some Christmas cards so far:

I've had several people asking about doing a Christmas card or baby announcement for them, normally I wouldn't charge anything because I love it so much--but it does take up some time for me to get it right, so here is the info if you want it:

$10 digital design (tell me what you want!! The style, color scheme, how many pictures, etc)--Just send the pictures you want on the card and I will email you a hi-def .jpeg and you can print them yourself at your local photo printer OR I have printing options if you'd prefer (these turn out a thousand times more professional with free envelopes PLUS you get front and back printing and the option of plain,linen,or metallic cardstock) and I can have them shipped straight to you. 

Lovey Dovey

There has been alot of holding and hugging in our house these past two weeks!  We hug and kiss alot in this family, but these last two weeks have been ALOT!!! Kenwood is definitely starting to sense that there is about to be some major changes in our house....he may actually be grasping that a sister is coming but nevertheless he knows SOMETHING is going to happen.  Kenwood has been very PRO-mommy lately and wants to be held and snuggled ALL the time.  It's really pretty sweet because he has never been a cuddly little boy, so I'm trying to take advantage of my time with my sweet little boy while he's the "only child". 

I am certainly not complaining, but the tantrums we get when Mommy can't play with him or hold him all day long (I am pregnant with back pain and exhaustion people!) are clearly a sign he knows something's up! It's actually fairly humorous, because I was telling my Bible Study girls the other day how I wished he would cuddle and want me to love on him more because he was so independent.....I guess the term is "Be careful what  you PRAY for".  God has a sense of humor, I know he does. 

The joy of leftovers

Speaking of cooking adventures...we had spaghetti for dinner last night.  Which is apparently Kenwood's favorite meal of all time.  He ate more than both Dillon and I combined!!  So, I heated up some leftovers for lunch today...he ate TWO full bowls.  There is just something so funny about spaghetti kid pictures, enjoy:

I love spaghetti, I love it so much, I like to put it in my hair....

 But, the fork doesn't work quite like mommy's brush....

 Mommy said: "Say Cheese!"...so I did. Sarcasm runs in my family.

 I got to drink Chocolate Milk for lunch...It's so good, I want to drink it with my eyes closed.

Adventures in Cooking: Pork Chops and Scalloped Potatoes

Well, hello there.  It's been awhile since I've talked to you!  As you all know, my adventures in cooking have begun.  It was always a little hard for me to believe that cooking at home was actually cheaper than eating out.  I mean, you have to buy ALL the ingredients for every single meal.  However, I have been pleasantly surprised.  After 3 weeks of cooking on a regular basis (at least 4-5 nights a week), my grocery bill was literally cut in half for the week.  Reason being, now that I have most of the mundane ingredients for cooking in general, I didn't have to buy seasoning, spices, oil, etc.  And this family of 3 literally has good food for every meal for the next week for under $50!!! YAHHOOOOOO Here is a VERY easy recipe I tried on Monday.  It was delicious!

Pork Chops & Scalloped Potatoes:

2 Pork Chops
2 Potatoes
2 cups Milk
1/2 cup shredded cheese

PreHeat oven to 350 degrees. Season pork chops with salt & pepper as desired.  I used Lawry's Salt and Pepper generously coating the chops.  Cut potatoes in slices and layer on the bottom of a casserole dish, then pour in milk over potatoes, then cover with shredded cheese.  Lay pork chops on top of potato/milk/cheese mixture and bake in the oven for 30 minutes.

After baking, BROIL on HI for 3 minutes, flip the chop, and BROIL on HI for 3 more minutes. Pork chops should be cooked to an internal temperature of 155 degrees.

YUMMY!!!