Thanksgiving 2011

We spent Thursday with Brandon's family and Friday with my dad's family in Huntsville Alabama.  We had a wonderful long weekend with family!

I brought some "acorns" that I found on Pinterest. Easy and everyone seemed to enjoy!

24 days of Thankfulness

Everyone has been so good about updating their daily "what I'm thankful for" since November 1st through Thanksgiving on November 24th.  I want to participate so I'm going to put all 24 here in this post.  Often I find myself wishing I had this or had that, when in reality, I need to count my blessings because I am truly blessed beyond measure!

1. A beautiful, healthy, sweet baby girl. She has brought so much joy into my life, taught me what true love really is, and has changed my life for the better in little and in big ways.  I can't imagine my life without her.  I'm so thankful God gave me Hadley and gave me the opportunity to be her mommy!
2. A loving husband who is the most amazing partner I could ever have in life. He loves me for me...the good, the bad, and the ugly!  He is a wonderful daddy to our child - melts my heart!
3. A whole village that supports our family!  Our parents, siblings, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc. are always there for us whenever we need anything!  They are there for us at a moments notice.
4. Good jobs. With so many people out of work right now that would do anything for a job, we are so lucky to be employed by such a wonderful company!
5. Moments with my family...even if we are home with a sick baby, or having a trying day with Hadley, I truly treasure each moment with my little family.
6. An awesome, loving God who listens and answers prayers. A God who provides. An all knowing God whose timing is perfect.
7. A roof over our head - the place we call home! We love our little house and it's perfect for us right now.
8. Bedtime!  This momma is exhausted at the end of the day and I simply love falling asleep after a long day all snuggled up to my husband.
9. The ability to work out during lunch.  I love having access to a gym and different fitness classes everyday.  RIPPED, toning, zumba, and bootcamp, just to name a few!  I love this time everyday!
10. A wonderful daycare for Hadley.  I love, love, love her teachers!  And the fact they provide her nutritous meals and snacks everyday, and diapers!  I don't have to worry about packing a bag for her each day, and I always know they will make sure she is fed and happy. 
11. The internet. How did people do it before computers and the internet?!  No blogging, no online shopping, no research for the kiddos!?  I guess you actually had to look up recipes in a cookbook (I can hardly cook something that doesn't have lots of reviews to read!), and go all over town for diapers and other necessities, where now I can price compare and buy goods within minutes from home while I'm in my PJs!
12. Great friends. I am so lucky to have so many amazing and strong women (and men) as friends.  Some are here in town and others are scattered across the U.S., but I wish I saw all of them more often!
13. Other bloggers that write so eloquently and honestly about so many different topics.
14. Websites like etsy where I can buy home-made goods since this momma isn't so crafty...I love supporting people that work out of there home like stay-at-home mommas!
15. Loyalty cards at stores I frequent - Salsaritas, Lenny's, Kid-to-Kid, and the lady who does my monogramming, just to name a few.
16. The sweet sounds my little girl makes. Whether it is her jibber-jabbering, saying 'mommy' or 'daddy', or makes little noises as she drifts off to sleep, these are my favorite sounds in the whole wide world.
17. Professional photographers that capture moments with my family so beautifully.  It's amazing how God gives us all different talents and interests...make the world go 'round.
18. Bluetooth and an ipod hookup in my car.  Need I say more?
19. Consignments stores and sales. I save so much $ shopping at these types sales for Hadley!  We have some great ones in town.
20. Thankful for the rest of the week off to spend some quality time with the people I love, eat some delicious food, and shopping with the other crazies on Black Friday!
21. Deal sites - Groupon, Zulily, Plum District, Half Off Depot, etc!  I am hooked....I admit it.  I love saving $!
22. Cardboard page books.  My little sweetie isn't so gentle with books.  These books with pages that you can't rip out are perfect for her right now.
23. DVR!  We record all our favorite shows and watch them when we have time.  And we can skip all the commercials!  My DVR remembers when a new season starts, even when I forget.  
24. My video baby monitor.  I don't know how parents got along without these things back in the day. I love sneaking a little peak of my sweet girl anytime I want :)  Sometimes when she is sleeping good, I love going in her room for extra pats and kisses just before I go to bed.

14 months

Quick 14 month update!

• 23 lbs and 11 ounces
• Size 4 diapers
• 12-18 month clothing
• Walking everywhere!  Exploring everything!  Keeping me very busy!
• Says all kinds of words now!  Some new words this month include cracker (more like 'crack-coo'), all done (more like 'ga gone'), Uh-ew (she says this alot, but always at the right time), Mimi (my mom), Ga-ga (Brandon's mom), night-night (more like 'ni-ni')
• Knows what sound a doggie ('woo woo'), a cat ('m-aw'), and a duck ('qak-qak') make
• Will point to her nose, mouth, belly, and head when you ask her where they are.
• Still an 11-12 hour sleeper with bed time around 7:30 pm.  One nap a day at noon.
• Great eater as usual!  Doesn't really dislike anything at this point, and she will try anything.  We even gave her sushi a couple weekends ago and she loved it!  Still not a big milk drinker though. 
• We bought her some toddler forks to try this weekend as she always wants mine. She is doing great with the fork!  
• She seems to be cutting several new teeth at the moment. She loves brushing her teeth! Or shall I say, she loves it when I brush her teeth, haha!  We do this during bath time each night.
• Good at giving mommy and daddy kisses when we ask for them...so sweet.
• Hearing her sweet little voice say anything melts my heart like butta!
• Mimics hand gestures during songs (ie. Itsy bitsy spider and Baby Bumblebee) - adorable I tell you!

Friendsgiving 2011

We had our annual Friendsgiving a couple weekends ago at the Strands house!  We had a great time and stuffed our faces!  Hadley was able to enjoy all the fixins' this year!

We also went to Gatlinburg for my friend Karah's birthday.  Her husband rented a cabin and we played a fun Murder Mystery game - some people really got into it with their outfits, accents, etc!  There were 3 different types of chili for dinner and amazing cupcakes from The Cup!  It was a nice little getaway for Brandon and myself - we even went up a little early to hit up the outlets!

Recent Recipes

How did I plan out dinner before Pinterest?  I'll never know!  Here are a couple recipes we tried recently from Pinterest and loved!

Fiesta Chicken Casserole

Ingredients
3 cup cooked chopped chicken (I used canned chicken)
1 cup instant rice (uncooked)
1 can cream of chicken soup (I used 98% fat free)
1 can Rotel diced tomatoes and chiles, undrained
1 Tbsp Southwestern or Taco seasoning
2 Tbsp milk
1-2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
1/2 cup crushed tortilla chips or Doritos (I used Doritos...and ate alot of them while cooking, I haven't had them in years...so bad for you but why must they taste sooo good!)

Directions
Preheat oven to 350.  Combine chicken, rice, soup, Rotel, seasoning, milk and 3/4 cup of cheese. Pour into a lightly greased 9x9 pan. Cover and bake for 30 minutes. Top casserole with crushed chips and remaining cheese, bake uncovered for 5-10 minutes, until cheese is melted.

*This is sooo easy and delish!  I made this the night before and popped in the oven when we got home from work.

Crock Pot Minestrone Soup

Weight Watcher Recipe

Ingredients
1/2 onion, chopped
1 cup carrots, chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes
1 (15 oz) can white beans, drained, rinsed (cannellini or navy)
3 cups fat free chicken broth (or vegetable broth for vegetarians)
1 oz chunk of good Parmesan cheese rind
1 fresh rosemary sprig
2 bay leaves
2 tbsp chopped fresh basil
1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves
1 medium zucchini, chopped
2 cups chopped fresh or frozen (defrosted) spinach
2 cups cooked small pasta like ditalini or elbows (al dente)

Directions
Rinse and drain beans. Puree beans with 1 cup of the broth in a blender. (I didn't puree the beans)

In a crock pot, combine broth, tomatoes, pureed beans, carrots, celery, onion, garlic, herbs, Parmesan cheese rind, salt and pepper. Cover and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours.

Forty minutes before the soup is done cooking, add zucchini and spinach. Cover and cook 30 more minutes. Add cooked pasta, cook 10 minutes more. Remove bay leaves, rosemary sprig, parmesan rind and season to taste with salt and black pepper. Ladle soup into bowls and top with extra parmesan cheese. 

*We all really liked this.  I used gluten free pasta, and voila, gluten free soup!  Great way to eat alot of veggies.  I also added squash since I had some on hand.

Christmas Shopping!

I officially started marking things off our Christmas shopping list this weekend!  Online shopping is too easy....I can't imagine trying to Christmas shop without the internet.  How did our parents do it?!

We ordered Hadley a play kitchen!  I've been "pinning" lots of adorable DIY kitchens on Pinterest, but let's face it, Brandon and I are not the craftiest pair in the world.  The Kidkraft brand kitchens get high marks from reviewers and are 1/2 the price of the Pottery Barn Kids kitchens that are very similar.  We got this one from Walmart.com for $99 + free shipping!  Now on the hunt for utensils and play food!

I also sat down and make our annual Shutterfly calendar for all the grandparents.  We had so many great pictures to choose from - I can't wait for them to all see the final product!  I have an extra $10 coupon Shutterfly mailed me, so if anyone needs the code (exp 12/15/11), just leave a comment and I'll email it to you.

Love these Lima Bean monogrammed platters and cutting boards on sale today at Zulily.com!  Ordered one of the platters for someone on my Christmas list and a cutting board for myself :)  I seriously couldn't help myself.

Happy Monday all!