Life with a baby

So I am pretty sure that while I am in LOVE with my sweet new baby girl....I am truly missing sleep. I'm not sure anything prepares you for the lack of sleep you experience with a newborn at home. Our little gal has her days and nights seriously mixed up...which is so funny to me since she seemed to have them totally figured out while inside me. She was never the type of baby to keep me awake kicking and poking me all night long in my belly like many other pregnant women experience. However...we must be making up for lost time now. Luckily Pat has been off for the past few weeks and has been able to pick up a feeding during the night to help out! It is amazing how wonderful a 3 hour stretch of sleep can feel!

Other than lack of sleep though...our Lucy is growing and changing so much! She went to the Dr. on Tuesday and is now up to 7lbs 4 ounces!!!! I love to see how much she changes each day.

She is very alert (when awake) and will follow voices! She can recognize both Pat's and my voices from across the room and makes the best eye contact while being fed!

Christmas didn't really seem like Christmas this year. Yes, we were excited to have Lucy as our gift...however we were more focused on feedings and poopy diapers than much of anything else. We had a great time spending the holiday with family! Here are some pictures of our sweet little Christmas baby:

Team Santa!

Family photo at my mom's for Christmas Eve!

Our little stocking stuffer!

All the girls!

Pat with Lucy and Roxy!

We had a newborn photographer come last week and take pictures of Lucy and I can't wait to show you those when we get them back! They turned out soo great!!

And finally here is the last belly picture of me...and then a picture of me and Lucy together!

There still hasn't been much cooking going on here because we have been living off all the wonderful food our friends and family have made for us recently. Which proves that sometimes the best meal is the one you don't have to make yourself!!

Lucy

Oh my goodness....my sweet baby girl is FINALLY here! I meant to update my blog earlier about her arrival, but mostly I have been just soaking her in for the past few weeks! Oh...and trying to sleep when I can! I'm not sure anything can prepare you for just how exhausting and how incredibly rewarding having a baby is.


She came into our lives Tuesday morning, December 7th with a full set of lungs and personality to boot! It is so fun getting to know who this little person is. So far we have been lucky with a pretty good baby, but when she is ready to eat....she is READY to eat! Other than that she is pretty content, which makes mama and daddy pretty happy!


Here are a few pictures of our sweet little girl:

Born December 7th, 2010 at 7:42am

6lbs 1 oz 18 1/2 inches long

My sweet little Lucy!

My cousin Heidi who had her little boy John just a few hours before Lucy was born! How fun to have her right down the hall!!


We are home!

Lots more posts to come...but as I was so delayed in posting this I wanted to get something up!

37 weeks and counting....

So we have a date! December 7th we will be meeting our sweet little girl! I can't believe how close we are! My dr. appointment yesterday confirmed what I had been thinking...we probably won't make it until the 10th like Pat and I had been hoping for. That's only because Pat would then have been able to take off the rest of the month....but we'll make it work!

My dr. told us her head was fully engaged and I was about a fingertip dilated. She will probably be a small baby too....somewhere right around the 6 pound mark I am guessing. Good thing I have some super cute newborn clothes for her to wear!

I am so looking forward to my maternity leave and meeting sweet Lucy! As Pat and I were going to bed last night I looked at him and said, "Oh my goodness...next week at this time we will have a baby!" I am exciting and nervous all at once.

This weekend we plan on just taking it easy and enjoying time together. Her room is ready to go and the bags are (mostly) packed. We will try to spend a lot of time with Roxy too. Not sure how she will handle her new little "sister" but I think in time she will LOVE her!

And once again...no pictures! I am so sorry! But I promise I will get better at that, especially once Lil' Miss gets here!

So....the next time I post I will probably be introducing our sweet little girl! Can't wait!!!

Stay tuned......

Shutterfly Holiday Cards!

So it's that time of year again so get those Christmas cards ready to be sent out! This year I am extra excited about our Christmas cards as they will also serve as an announcement of our new baby girl...no she isn't here yet, but will be very, very soon!!

I recently learned that Shutterfly is giving bloggers 50 free holiday cards to those who post about it....so here I am!

If you haven't checked Shutterfly out before, you really should! They have fantastic products that are very user friendly and reasonably priced. I have a wedding album from them and soon will be putting together a baby album I am sure!

Anyways their holiday card selection this year is fantastic....below are a few of my favorites:

Check our your favorites at Shutterfly

And...if you are a blogger...get in on this deal fast! Head here for the info!

35 Weeks....

Wow...I can't believe I am 35 weeks pregnant today! Time just seems to by flying by which is a bit alarming since we still have so much left to do before our sweet little girl gets here!! It seems like just yesterday Pat and I were talking about starting a family and then wham, I was pregnant!

And then came the pregnancy roller coaster for the next, oh, 8 months! First they thought I was having an ectopic pregnancy, then that got cleared up. Then there were a few more scares here and there throughout the pregnancy including a fun trip to Labor and Delivery at 25 weeks! But thankfully everything has always turned out perfectly!

And now, our little bean is about 5 pounds and just about fully cooked!

I have been pretty tired again most evenings and so I come home and nap or lie on the couch for awhile. I am waiting for our final shower this weekend before I really start organizing the baby room....and because it seems like such a daunting task. I am not a very organized person to begin with....then add it all these teeny, tiny baby clothes and I am lost.

I actually spent my lunch break googling how to fold and organize baby clothes.

The last few weeks have been a mix of utter excitement and bittersweet moments. I keep looking at my wonderful husband knowing that very soon it will no longer be just the two of us. At night while we watch TV I think to myself how different everything will be in a matter of a few mere weeks. It almost makes me want to tear up a bit. Don't get me wrong, I am thrilled that Little Miss will be here and I know we will love her more than anything....but it's just knowing that this stage of our lives is coming to an end very, very soon.

We have another Dr. appointment set for November 22nd where we will hopefully schedule my c-section. That was a very difficult decision to make, but due to my previous surgeries, Pat and I felt that was the safest route to go for delivery. I'm not thrilled about having another surgery, but as Pat puts it, that is just temporary and my health that we are preserving is long term. So...c-section it is. I can't wait for our next appointment as I am anxious to know if I am making any progress towards going into labor and also to know when we will meet our little girl!!

She did give Pat quite a show the other night wiggling and moving away in my tummy! Pat kept calling her a Wiggle Worm and his eyes kept bugging out of his head at how much she was moving. I know I will miss feeling her movements inside me all day long once she is here. She is my constant buddy, always hanging out with me and encouraging me to eat lots of chocolate and ice cream!

Anyways, as you may have guessed, my cooking habits have slowed down considerably. I don't even have a picture to include in this blog as I left my flash drive at home, but soon I will update with a beautiful picture my mom took this past week of my baby belly and me!

So, while there may not be many recipes in the next few weeks/months, there will be plenty of baby updates...if that is the sort of thing you are into! :)

Baby Showers!!

Yes...the time has finally come for baby showers! My mom threw a wonderful family shower a few weekends ago and then last night my Girl's Night girls put on a beautiful shower too!!! I have some pictures from my mom's shower that I will share, but unfortunately didn't take 1 single picture from last nights shower...so I will have to get some from my friends and then share with you!

For the shower on my mom's side, we had a bakery in town make the cookies....seriously...how cute are these?!?!

Also it was great because my cousin Heidi was there and she is due 2 days before me! Can you believe it? She is having her third child and this one is a little guy....I am sure he will be a cutie like his brother and sister!!

Here is a picture of my wonderful mamma and me!!

The whole gang!

All of the wonderful gifts for our wonderful little girl!!

I just can't believe all the wonderful things we are getting for the baby girl!!! And, I can't believe how close she is to getting here. I wobble between total excitement, and total fear! But I think I lean more towards the excited side!

Pat and I are continuing to clean out our old work-out room and transform it into the perfect room for our little sweet pea! It has been a S-L-O-W work in progress....but we are getting there! Pat has been a huge help with organizing and moving stuff too. Hopefully this "nesting" thing all the baby books talk about kicks in soon....until then I would much rather take a nap! Haha!

For both showers I made a delicious Jalapeno Popper dip....and for both showers I failed to take a picture of it! So sorry! But I promise...it is REALLY, REALLY good. And, super simple to toss together!

Here is the recipe:

Jalapeno Popper Dip

from Annie's Eats

Ingredients

2- 8oz packages softened cream cheese

1 cup mayo

1-4oz can chopped green chiles, drained

1-4oz can diced jalapeno peppers, drained

1/2 cup shredded Mexican style cheese

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1 cup Panko breadcrumbs

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Cooking Spray

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

2. In a medium bowl, combine cream cheese, mayo, green chiles, jalapenos, and shredded cheeses. Mix thoroughly with a spoon or spatula until smooth and evenly combined. Spread the mixture into a baking dish (approx 9x9 inches).

3. Sprinkle both the Panko breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese on top of mixture.

4. Spray lightly with cooking spray.

5. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the mixture is hot and topping is golden. Serve warm with baguette slices.

Last Bite: Well....this dip was super easy and super yummy! It has enough of a bite to really taste great, but not too much to feel like your mouth is on fire! And....baby showers with friends and family are just the best! One more baby shower to go...can't wait!!!

Ham and Cheese Sliders

Ahh...October! My favorite month of the year! I love how fall comes in during this month. Some days are chilly....others are quite warm like it is today! Fall also means Football season which I LOVE! I am a huge Colts fan...and for my husband...also a U of M fan. I so look forward to Saturday and Sunday afternoon, where all I have to do is cheer my team on...and eat!

These sliders are perfect for this time of year! They are quick to put together and very tasty. As I was making these this past weekend I was smiling to myself thinking about our little baby growing away in my belly. The recipe calls for you to sprinkle poppy seeds on the tops of the sliders and I was amazed to realize that at one point our baby was only the size of a poppy seed. Now she is just about 3 pounds and full of kicks and jabs all day long! I am more amazed that we will meet her in just 2 short months! Wow!

Anyways...back to the sliders! I hope you enjoy them!

Ham and Cheese Sliders

adapted from Annie's Eats

Ingredients

For sliders:

1 pack of Hawaiian Snack Rolls (there are 4 to a pack)

4 slices of ham

4 slices of provolone cheese

Mayo

For sauce:

3 Tbs melted butter

1/2 Tbs yellow mustard

1/2 tsp dried onion

1/4 tsp Worcestershire sauce

Poppy seeds for sprinkling

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees

2. To assemble sliders, put mayo on each side of slider roll. Place 1 piece of ham and 1 piece of cheese on one side and put the slider together. Place on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil.

3. To make the sauce combine all ingredients except the poppy seeds into a small bowl and whisk to combine. Drizzle over the sliders. Sprinkle with poppy seeds.

4. Cover with foil and bake for 10 minutes. Remove the foil and bake an additional 2 minutes, or until the cheese has melted. Serve warm.

Last Bite: Super easy and super fast. Feel free to experiment with these as well...I am sure there are some great flavor combos out there! Enjoy!