Summer Break Fun

    Oh, how I love Summer Break! Spending all my time with these two goofs is the absolute best! Since we got home from Destin, our summer break has been pretty calm, but we have had a few adventures in the past 2 weeks..

    It has rained... A LOT. Pretty much every single day at some time or another, it has rained. So we have spent a lot of time indoors. The girls have spent a lot of time playing. I don't think either one of them realized how many toys they had until now, but they have played with them all. Their favorite way to play is together. Wherever Rylee is, that's where Payton wants to be and the feeling is mutual. I love their bond and hope it's always this strong.

     Last weekend, we were tired of being cooped up, so we headed to Jackson with Nonna and Granddaddy. We shopped for Rylee's birthday gifts and did some more shopping and then went to dinner at Olive Garden. Rylee was thrilled, they have a chicken tenders, spaghetti, and french fry meal-all her favorites! She has been doing so much better about her eating habits; she's still very picky, but it's so much better than before.

    Monday we went to dinner at Los Portales to celebrate Mary's birthday which was on Tuesday. After we ate, the kids went out on the sidewalk and played in the rain. It was very funny. Tuesday, the girls and I went to Wal-mart to get a few things and then we stopped by the bank to give Mary her birthday gift and Rylee picked her out a balloon while we were shopping. 

      Wednesday, we headed to Dyersburg with Liz and Kaden. Liz and I had some "teacher shopping" to do, then we took the kids to Chik-fil-a and the park. The shopping part was a little hectic with our wild kiddos, but the rest was a lot of fun. 

     Wednesday evening, we headed to Ripley Water Park for Trent's 3rd birthday party. Both girls loved the water so. Payton liked to sit on the edge and splash, and Rylee was fearless. She slid down the kid's slides over and over and over, and at the end of the party, I took her down the big slide. She covered her face at the end because she didn't want water to get in her eyes, but under those hands was the biggest smile, and she was laughing the entire way down! Now she is more excited than ever for her birthday party there next weekend.

     Yesterday, I had to go to the dentist, and today I had to get a physical for my insurance, so the girls got to spend a little time yesterday with Granny and Paw Paw and a little time today with Nonna. Other than that, they have spent a lot of time in this playroom: Rylee playing Barbies, and Payton jamming away in this piano. I have been organizing the house little by little over these rainy days, and I am amazed at how much has gotten done. Why can't it always be summer break?!

    And we finally got a little bit of sunshine!!!!!!!!! The girls were both content as could be in this pool splashing and enjoying the sunshine. Mommy even got to catch a few rays while they played. For the first time in 2 weeks, it actually felt like summer break! ;)

Easy Chicken Crockpot Recipes

     I use my blog to record memories for my little family. I have them printed into books each year, and I hope in the future the girls will find pleasure in opening those books and reading about their childhood adventures... Something I want them to remember as they grow up is their mother's love for cooking. I truly love to cook, especially now, on summer break, when I have time for it. But often during the school year, I do not have the time, and that's when my crockpot gets A LOT of use. I thought I'd share a few of my favorite chicken crockpot recipes so when my girls are older and off saving the world or being president or whatever they become, they can find some old favorites that are EASY to make and yummy to enjoy. All of these recipes involve boneless skinless chicken breast because it is what we prefer, but any cut of chicken or porkchops would taste great in any of these recipes.

Chicken with Potatoes in Mushroom & Celery Gravy

Ingredients:

3-5 boneless skinless chicken breasts  (depending on size of the breast and how many people you are serving)

1 tbsp butter

1 can cream of celery soup

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 cup milk

1 tsp red pepper flakes

1 tsp seasoning salt

1 tsp onion powder

3-5 peeled potatoes sliced or cut into fourths

Directions:

-Mix cream of celery soup, cream of mushroom soup, milk, red pepper flakes, seasoning salt, and onion powder in crockpot.

-Coat chicken breasts in butter (I use a spoon and just spread the butter onto the chicken breast - this keeps the meat from drying out in the crockpot all day) and add the soup mixture in crockpot

-Add potatoes to crockpot.

-Cook in crock pot on low heat for 8-10  hours if chicken is frozen, 6-8 hours for thawed.

Italian Chicken Breasts

Ingredients:

3-5 Boneless skinless chicken breasts  (depending on size of the breast and how many people you are serving)

1 tbsp Butter

1 cup Zesty Italian Dressing

1 tsp Garlic powder

1 tsp Italian seasoning

1 tsp Red pepper flakes

1 tbsp Lemon juice (optional)

Directions:

-Coat chicken breasts in butter (I use a spoon and just spread the butter onto the chicken breast - this keeps the meat from drying out in the crockpot all day) and place in the crockpot.

-Season the chicken breasts with salt & pepper, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, and red pepper flakes. 

-Pour Zesty Italian dressing and lemon juice over the seasoned chicken breast.

-Cook in crock pot on low heat for 6-8  hours if chicken is frozen, 4-6 hours for thawed.

BBQ Chicken Breasts

Ingredients:

3-5 Boneless skinless chicken breasts  (depending on size of the breast and how many people you are serving)

1 tbsp Butter

3/4 cup BBQ sauce

1 tsp Red pepper flakes

1/2 cup water

Directions:

-Coat chicken breasts in butter (I use a spoon and just spread the butter onto the chicken breast - this keeps the meat from drying out in the crockpot all day) and place in the crockpot.

-Season the chicken breasts with salt & pepper and red pepper flakes. 

-Pour BBQ sauce and water over the seasoned chicken breast.

-Cook in crock pot on low heat for 6-8  hours if chicken is frozen, 4-6 hours for thawed.

     Didn't I tell you these were easy?! 

8 Months Old!

   Our little Joy-bug is 8 Months Old! She had her 8-month "birthday" on Tuesday, but since we were on vacation, I'm a little late with this post. She is just under 19 lbs (50th percentile) and about 27 in. long (50th percentile). She's thinned out a lot, but she hasn't been eating or drinking well at all lately. I'm thinking it had something to do with the double ear infection she had a couple weeks ago and whatever she had that made her run fever most of last week. She's transitioning from size 6-9 M clothes to size 12 M clothes & she's up to size 18 M sleepers. She wears size 3 diapers, and size 2 shoes (very rarely; she prefers to be barefoot!). She goes to bed around 8 pm and wakes up around 6 am. She is still mostly breastfed, however while on vacation, she had a lot of formula partly out of convenience and partly because it was difficult for me to stay hydrated enough to keep up with what she needed. Since I'm on summer break, I will have time this week to work on getting my supply and routine back to where it should be, and my goal is to have her 100% breastfed on days that we stay home, and only use formula for when we go out. (She is too wild to attempt nursing in public at this age, she always pulls the cover down! :o)

     She has 2 little teeth, both on bottom! She is trying to crawl, but still hasn't officially crawled, yet. She's getting good at scooting around though, and can support her weight and stand by holding onto something. She's finally mastered her sippy within this last week, and has also started holding her own bottles. She is still not such a great napper. She's getting better though, and typically takes two 1 1/2 - 2 hour long naps and one evening catnap per day.

  Until last week, she was still eating 4 tbsp cereal and a babyfood fruit for breakfast, a babyfood fruit and a babyfood veggie for lunch, and a gerber yogurt and babyfood meal for dinner, but all of the sudden she won't eat her babyfood at all right now. She will still chow down on puffs or table foods, but she's refusing her babyfood, and she hasn't been drinking well either. I'm still offering them to her, though. I'm hoping it's just something to do with how she's been sick lately, and things go back to normal soon. It worries me because I've noticed her thinning out, and she dropped down from a weight in the 75th percentile last month to the 50th percentile this month. I hope she starts eating like she used to soon!

  We've had some new adventures this month: her first time playing a the park and her first beach vacation! She still loves the outdoors, so both adventures were right up her alley! She is ALWAYS smiling. She babbles constantly, but she has a few words she connects meaning to: "dada," "hi/hey," "baba" (I've noticed she refers to both breast and bottle as "baba"), and "wawa" (this is what she consistently calls Rylee). I'm impressed at how much she talks, but I know she is learning a lot from her big sister!

    We took her to the pediatric eye dr., and he wanted us to wait a little longer to see if her tear duct would unblock on its own. If not, she will have a probe in July to manually unblock it. She will not have to be put to sleep, so I was excited to hear that! It still has issues with running at this point, but it doesn't seem to bother her, so we will wait and see if it clears up on its own!

Destin 2014

    Last Saturday, we woke up super early, packed up the car, and we were on the road towards Destin before 6 am. We stoppped from 8:15-9 for breakfast and let the girls stretch their legs a little. Then we were back on the road until we stopped form lunch from about 12-1:30, and we had to make one more stop to feed Payton and let Rylee go potty around 4. With all the stops, we made it to Destin around 5:45, and we immediately headed to the beach. Rylee LOVED playing in the waves and cried when it was time to go in and begin getting settled into the condo. I could not believe how goo the girls were the whole way to Destin. Stops and all, ti took us about 12 hours to get down there, and neither one of them cried at all. Payton woudl ebgin to whimper when she was hungry, but that's it. No tears! I was in shock that traveling with a 3-year-old and 8-month-old could be so easy!

      Our first day at the beach was a blast! It was the only day the whole trip that the water was calm enough for Rylee to get in deep in her puddle jumper and swim. I was proud of her for being brave enough to swim on her own in the ocean. After we headed in to the condo and had lunch, we headed to the pool. Payton and Rylee both loved the pool. Payton liked to sit on the ledge and splash, and Rylee swam and swam and swam. She is such a water bug! While we were at the pool, the men headed to Walmart and got some crab legs that Brandon cooked us for dinner. We all enjoyed a nice dinner together in the condo then we headed back out to the beach and the kids played a little more until it was dark. It was the perfect way to spend our first day at the beach!

 Monday was Memorial Day, so that morning at the beach the girls wore matching swimsuits, Payton's in red and Rylee's in blue. The water was rougher Tuesday than on Monday, so Rylee stayed on the shore, but she had a blast playing in the sand, but once she started to get hot, we headed to the pool so she could swim and Payton could try out her new floatie in the pool. After swimming for about an hour, we headed in for lunch and after a quick bath, the girls went down for a nap. Ryan and I got ready and relaxed for a little bit while they napped, then we headed to Fudpucker's to have dinner with Nonna, Granddaddy, Aunt Mel, Uncle Josh, and Austin. They were in Destin at the same time as us and staying in condos that were not far from ours, so we had to get together! After a delicious dinner at Fudpucker's, we headed to The Track, and Rylee had the time of her life riding go carts with daddy and riding all the little rides. She is such a little daredevil. She loved all of the rides, even things I was worried she would be afraid of. The scariest one, "the monkey ride," was her favorite and she smiled and laughed the entire time she rode it!

     Tuesday, Ryan went deep sea fishing with Josh and I took the girls down to the beach. IT was a little overwhelming trying to get both of them down there and get everything set up. Then of course, Payton decided that was the day she did not want to be put down at all (later we realized she was running fever, but I didn't realize it at the time, so I was a little frustrated), but luckily Rylee had a blast playing in the waves and her Aunt Mary and Aunt Liz were super helpful about watching out for her while I was tending to sweet baby Payton. After fun at the beach, we headed in for lunch. Then the 3 kids headed down to the pool with Brandon and Chuck and Brantley while "the girls" got ready and Payton napped. Then we went down and watched the kids swim while they got ready. When everyone was ready, and Ryan was finally back from fishing, we headed to Harry T's for a very rushed dinner, and ran to the Southern Star for a dolphin cruise. Rylee loved the cruise for bout the first hour, but since she hadn't napped and Payton wasn't feeling well, we ended the cruise with 2 sleeping girls. When we got home from the cruise we realized Payton had a 102 temp. We were thankful we had brought some infant tylenol and motrin, and we hoped it was just exhaustion, but we kept an eye on her.

     Wednesday, we all went down to the beach, Payton was still running fever, but at this point we figured she had caught whatever  Rylee had the week before, and we were just trying to keep her comfortable. She was as happy as can be when she had medicine, so we decided that if it got really high we would take her to an Urgent Care, but otherwise we just rolled with it. The kids played in the sand and Payton napped on daddy while Liz, Mary, and I played in the rough water. It was fun to jump the big waves. After a fun morning at the beach, we headed in and had lunch. Then "the girls" headed to the pool with the kids and the men went to Walmart to get burger and hotdogs to grill out for dinner! When the men got back, the kids were ready to go in, so they played and watched a movie while we got ready for family pictures on the beach. After pictures, the men grilled out, and we played cards with Brantley while the kids played toys in the condo. Dinner was delicious.

      Thursday we woke up to rain. We took the kids to Fort Walton to go bowling. It was their first time bowling and they had a blast. Then we separated into our own little families and Ryan and I took the girls to Fat Daddy's Pizza and Arcade for lunch and then some fun. Rylee had a blast playing all the games and won enough tickets to get several little toys. After Fat Daddy's, we headed to the condo, and Rylee watched Frozen while Payton and I napped. After naptime, we headed to AJ's for dinner and did a little shopping at the harbor, and then we played mini-golf at the track. Rylee was so funny playing mini-golf, and she had an absolute blast. She ended the night with a hole-in-one on the 18th hole.

      Friday, the sky was cloudy and the water was rough, but it was our last day, so we stayed at the beach until after 1 o'clock! Mary, Chuck, Brantley, and Bailey headed home Friday, so they left the beach around 10:30 or so, but it was very difficult convincing Rylee and Kaden to leave the ocean. They fell in love with it on Friday. (Why do kids always have to wait to the last minute to really enjoy something?) They were laying down in the waves pretending to be seals, and jumping and splashing in the waves, and even baby Payton (who was finally fever free at the point!) decided she liked the ocean, too. She would watch the waves come in and get the biggest grin when the water would touch her little feet. We thoroughly enjoyed the beach on our last day, and it was so much fun watching the kids have a blast.  After fun at the beach, we headed in for a small lunch and showers, then we headed out to the harbor.

    We walked the harbor and did a little shopping, then we had dinner at Margaritaville. It was the best dinner of the week! It was our first time eating there, and both the food and the view was absolutely amazing. After dinner, Rylee wanted to go try out a few of the fun things they have to do on the harbor. She had a blast in the water balls. I thought she'd get scared because it was really loud when he filled it up with air, but she had the biggest smile the entire time. After she got out of the ball, she wanted to jump with the bungees on the trampoline thing. She jumped super high and was smiling and laughing the entire time. I cannot believe how brave she is.  She had a blast, though! As soon as Rylee got done jumping, it started to pour. We were sad because we were heading back to the condo and we had wanted to spend our last night sitting on the beach, but the rain changed our plans. So we spent our last night in the condo eating junk food, playing with the kids,, and talking and laughing.

      The ride home was smooth sailing. We left the condo around 8:30, stopped for lunch a little after 12, and only stopped once more-a quick stop for gas around 3- and we were home by 6:30. Again, the girls amazed me at how good they were on the trip. I really thought the way home would be awful and filled with whining and crying, but nope. They were both just as good as they were on the way down! Getting home was bittersweet, it was good to be in our home, but sad to be away from the beach. We had such a wonderful time together!

2 Years Down!

     School officially ends for this school year on Wednesday, but because we are going to be in Destin then, it ended for me today! I officially have 2 years of teaching experience. The 2 years could not have been more different. I was terrified going into this school year, a new grade, maternity leave, trying to learn from my first year mistakes, but it turned out to be an amazing year! I love my Kinder-babies so much, and I was sad to see them go!

    This week has been insane! Monday, I had to benchmark my students' IRL levels and individually test for report cards, while keeping the others occupied somehow. Tuesday, we had playday, and I had to begin packing up my classroom and turning in items. Wednesday, we had a field trip to Fort Pillow Park. Thursday, we had field day, and permanent records had to be done, and today, I had to finish packing up my classroom and make sure everything was ready for summer break. I also spent a lot of time just enjoy my kiddos. We did sidewalk chalk, watched movies, and I even brought them over to the first grade playground to play for a few minutes since they are going to be first graders very soon!

     The girls both had crazy last weeks, too. Payton got a double ear infection last week that she was still getting over at the beginning of this week, Rylee got severe poison ivy last Friday and spent all week trying to get over that, then developed high fever and cough, so she had to miss school Wednesday and Thursday. She was very excited to be able to go to school and see her teacher and all her friends for her last day today, though! Hopefully they can both stay well throughout our vacation next week.

Lactation cookies that actually taste good!

     Most nursing moms, especially working, nursing moms, will encounter supply issues at some point or another. I have no problem feeding my baby when I am able to nurse all day, but when I'm at work and pumping, it's an entirely different story especially since as a teacher, I don't get frequent breaks to pump, like some other working moms may. One of the best ways to increase milk supply is the consumption of certain foods and herbs that are natural galactagogues (stimulants of milk production) along with frequent nursing and/or pumping. Oatmeal, brewer's yeast, and flax seed are the 3 galactagogues that are used in this recipe.

     These 2 ingredients, Brewer's Yeast and Milled Flax Seed, were ingredients that I was unfamiliar with until recently. I was able to find the Flax Seed Meal at my local Walmart in the baking section, but because there aren't an abundance of health food stores nearby, I had to order the Brewer's Yeast on amazon.com.
      To boost my supply, I've tried taking fenugreek (9 capsules per day), drinking Mother's Milk tea (3-5 cups per day), and I recently made a recipe of lactation cookies that I had found online(3-4 cookies per day). The cookies worked the best for me, but I thought they were kind of gross. The texture was weird, and the flavor was just bland. If I'm supposed to be eating 3-4 cookies per day to stimulate milk supply, I want to eat something I like. So I was determined to make some lactation cookies that tasted good! My mind immediately went to a no bake chocolate cookie recipe my mother used to make, and I had to tweak it to add in the milled flax seed and brewer's yeast (I used the same amounts that were used in the other lactation cookie recipe I had tried to be sure I would get the same results), and also some extra sugar to balance the bitterness of those 2 ingredients. They turned out divine, so it no longer feels like work to eat the recommended 3-4 cookies per day! :)

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups              Granulated Sugar

1/4 cup                   Milk

1/2 cup or 1 stick  Butter

1/4 cup                  Baking Cocoa

3/4 cup                  Milled Flax Seed (Flax Seed Meal, Ground Flax Seed)

4 tbsp                     Brewer's Yeast

4 tbsp                     Peanut Butter

2 tsp                      Vanilla Extract

3 cups                   Old Fashioned Oats

Directions:

-Stir together sugar, milk, butter, and cocoa in a saucepan over medium heat.

-Add milled flax seed and brewer's yeast.

-Bring to a boil and boil for 1 minute.

-Add peanut butter and boil 2 additional minutes.

-Remove from heat and add vanilla and oats.

-Immediately drop by spoonfuls onto a cookie sheet.

-Cool on countertop (not in fridge or freezer) until solid and then enjoy!

*Makes about 2 dozen cookies.

**Eat 3-4 lactation cookies daily to boost milk supply. Eat 1-2 cookies daily to maintain supply.

Disclaimer: No amount of galactagogues are going to stimulate your milk supply without frequent nursing and/or pumping on your part. Typical nursing mothers need to completely empty their breasts every 3-4 hours to maintain adequate supply. (source: kellymoms.com)

5 Years!

     5 years ago yesterday, 2 families united, and 1 new family began. On May 16, 2009, Ryan became my family, and I became his. So many people said our marriage wouldn't work out. We were told things were moving to fast, and we were too young, but if you really know us, you know neither one of us has ever been one to care too much about what others have to say. We can both be pretty stubborn especially once we make up ours minds, and when it came to how much we loved each other, we knew no one could possibly know our love better than we did. We have made a lot of mistakes along the way, and things have been difficult for us at times because we got married so young, but neither of us will ever say that we wish we didn't get married exactly when we did. We do wish people could have been more supportive, and we could have some happier memories of that time in our lives, but the past is the past, and everything has fallen into place exactly the way it has for a reason.

     Yesterday, I started off the day by packing Ryan and entirely cheesy "lunch-o-love." His exact response was, "I was glad no one was sitting next to me when I opened my lunch." Haha! But I could tell he liked the extra mushy attention. Nonna picked up the girls from daycare, so we could have a date night to celebrate our anniversary after work. We headed to Jackson and enjoyed a nice dinner together. We talked and laughed and kissed throughout dinner like we used to when we were dating. It was a lot of fun, and just what we needed after what have been a difficult few months. Rylee, however, would have been mortified if she was there. She has gotten to where if we kiss at all in front of her she says, "Ew! Yuck!" I swear she is 3 going on 13...

       We have changed so much since we first got together. A lot of that has to do with the fact that we are parents now. I couldn't ever have guessed how amazing Ryan would be as a Daddy. He is so amazing with our little princesses. Both of them just adore him so. He is patient yet firm, funny yet comforting, and he cares about every single aspect of their lives. I love how involved he is with them both. I read a study once that most fathers admitted to not really feeling a deep bond with their child until around age 2 when they became more playful and less needy. I can say for a fact that Ryan fell head over heels for each of these girls on the very first day they were born and he was always by my side helping me with all their needs throughout infanthood and now with Rylee into toddlerhood. I could not have a better partner to parent these 2 princesses with. When we were talking about what we love most about each other, the first thing he said to me was that I was a good mommy to our girls, and honestly his parenting is one of the things I love most about him as well.

    And there are tons of other things I love about him as well. We are so incredibly goofy together, and I love that we have a life together filled with laughter. These last few months have been very hard, he had been working a TON of overtime and his work was getting more and more stressful. This time of year for teachers is stressful because it's filled with test prep, then testing, then report cards and permanent records and packing up for the end of the year, not to mention the classroom filled with students who have Spring Fever and would rather be anywhere but inside learning. It all gets very overwhelming. It was a bad season for us, from about February until recently, we were arguing a lot and not working together, and everything was just hard. But we never gave up on one another. We learned a lot about what we want and who we want to be and I feel like now we are happier than ever. That is the best thing about us, I know that no matter how bad it seems, we will never give up, and we will always choose to be together. Always. My biggest fear is losing one or both of my girls or losing Ryan. I honestly don't know how I would go through this life without him, and I certainly would never choose to. When we said our vows, we meant them forever, and that's how long we intend to be together! :)

Mother's Day 2014

      Rylee and I started our Mother's Day celebration off Friday night with a mother-daughter double date with Mary and Bailey. We went to dinner at Applebee's then went to see Rio 2. The girls were so funny, they both watched the movie so intently and did not take their eyes off the screen. We had a blast together.

     Saturday, we had errands to run, so we decided to make it fun by heading out for a family lunch first. I dressed the girls in matching tshirts and Rylee thought that was the best thing ever. I'm going to take advantage of this while I can because be fore long they won't enjoy matching outfits I'm sure!

    When we got home from our errands, Payton and I took a nice nap. I was TIRED from SAT 10 testing and hyped-up kindergartners at school all week, and being out at the movies the night before, so it was a much-needed rest!

       Sunday morning, Rylee couldn't wait to give me my card. She was so proud that she signed her and Payton's names all by herself. She also drew me a sweet picture of us 3. I love that little girl and her big heart so much! We were making a card for my mom one afternoon, and she signed her name and then she drew a big cross and she drew Jesus on that cross. Then she handed me the marker and said , "Mama, can you write to Grandma?" I asked her what she wanted me to write, and she said, "You need to write: Did you know Jesus died on the cross for you? He loves you and I love you, too." I cried, and I still tear up thinking about her precious heart. I am so blessed to be her mommy.

       Sunday, we got dressed up and headed to church. I missed the sermon because Payton was rowdy, so I took her out, then Rylee came and found us, so I spent most of church in the back playing with my princesses, but I guess that was a fitting way to spend Mother's Day. :)

     After church, we headed home. Ryan helped me clean the house since it was Mother's Day and all, then Mel, Austin, Nonna, and Granddaddy came over for a little bit. Rylee and Austin played and played. They are too funny together. After they headed home, Ryan made me a delicious dinner of grilled steaks and french fries. Yum!

      I lack adequate words to describe how I feel about these 2 princesses. I love them so much; I can feel it from my head to my toes. It kills me to see them hurting or upset, and it lifts my spirits to soaring heights just to see them smile or laugh. I am a weirdo. I do things differently than other people do. I feel strongly about certain things that others do not, and things that do bother some parents don't bother me. But I know that these 2 girls love me, and I surely know I love them. I feel so blessed that God has entrusted these 2 precious souls to my care, and I take my job as their mother very seriously. Motherhood humbles me, overwhelms me, drains me, fills me, gives me purpose, motivates me, frightens me, and overjoys me. I want the best for these 2 girls every single day, and part of wanting the best for them is making sure I am doing the best I can for them. The only way for me to do that is to give it all over to God and allow him to guide me as a parent and as his child. I know that I make mistakes, but I hope these angels always know that I love them and everything I do, I do because I love them so.