Daily struggle...

Every day at 9:45am I put my son in his swing and put his favorite show on, which at this time is Yo Gabba Gabba.  Then I go in the kitchen and get a sippy of milk for my daughter and tell her it's nap time and we go in her room.  I change her diaper then she walks to her bed and lays down and I cover her up and put the music box on and give her her milk.  During this time I usually leave while she drinks her milk and my son is content and I brush my teeth, do my hair, and if I can, take a shower.  But most times lately it hasn't worked that way.  My daughter has been wanting me in her room with her while she drinks her milk.  So, there I sit on the floor watching her drink her milk and my mind wanders.  I patiently wait for her to finish her milk so she can fall asleep.  Unfortunately, after she drinks her milk 98% of the time she hands me her sippy and doesn't go to bed.  I sit there as I watch her toss and turn, kick her covers off to then quickly cover herself back up again, line her stuffed animals up, kick them off to retrieve them back, and just so many other things that I'm just so emotionally exhausted watching her.  I wait patiently for her to tire herself out and fall asleep.  I have tried tiring her out to make her fall asleep easier and faster, but that never works.  I refuse to not give her a nap, otherwise she falls asleep later in the afternoon which makes bedtime even more difficult for my husband and I.  It is a daily struggle trying to get her to bed for nap and bedtime.  I have tried everything from giving her a relaxing bath to let her energy out to putting lavender lotion on her after her bath to relaxing music that I am nearly at my wits end right now.  Luckily summer vacation is almost here and my husband will be able to help me more when it is her nap time.  Here's to hoping my son will nap and fall asleep easily when he gets to the toddler years.

Chicken Stuffing Bake

When I was in high school as a freshman, one of my favorite things to eat for lunch was a turkey and swiss sandwich on wheat bread with no mustard or ketchup.  Now that I am an adult and my palate has changed somewhat, I don't like swiss cheese as much.  My daughter loves it on the other hand so I was more than happy to give her the leftover cheese I didn't need for this recipe.  It's another dish I got from the casserole cookbook.  Sad to say that this weekend will be the last time I cook any casserole dish for seven months.  It gets way too hot here and I don't want to turn the oven on and make the house hotter so I'm going to stop cooking casseroles for dinner.  Instead I will be making stuff out of my crockpot so I can't wait to share those recipes with everyone.  This dish was okay and the only reason I didn't care too much for it was because it had swiss cheese in it.  My husband loved it but rated it a 8.  The serving size for this meal states it serves 6, but we don't have a lot of leftovers left because my husband ate so much of it last night.  So, today he's going to pick up a rotisserie chicken and I'm going to make parmesan rice with green beans to go with the chicken.  Anyway, here's the recipe.

Chicken Stuffing Bake

6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves (6 oz. each)
6 slices of swiss cheese
1 (10 3/4 oz.) can condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted
1/3 cup white wine or chicken broth (I used chicken broth)
3 cups seasoned stuffing cubes
1/2 cup butter, melted

Place the chicken in a greased 13x9 baking dish; top with the cheese.  In a small bowl, combine the soup and wine; spoon over the cheese.  In a small bowl, combine the stuffing cubes and butter; sprinkle over the soup.  Bake, uncovered, at 350 for 45-55 minutes or until a meat thermometer reads 170. 

Makes 6 servings.

At last

I finally finished A's orders over the weekend.  She wanted 20 teabag holder boxes and 20 surprise goodie boxes.  She wanted them pink and pastel colors, so that's what I tried to do for her.  Here is the teabag holder box I made for A.  I forgot to take a picture of what the inside looks like.  Hopefully someone else wants to order these so I can take a picture of it.  It is so much fun to make and can't wait to make them again someday.  These teabag holders have four envelopes inside where you can stick four teabags in.  

Here are the 20 surprise goodie boxes.  She wanted one side to have a teacup and one side to have a teapot and on the inside on each side she wanted a flower.  So, I used my A Child's Year Cricut cartridge to cut out the images of the teacup and teapot.  I also used my Stampin' Up Flower Shoppe punch to punch out the flowers.  The flowers, teacups, and teapots are all on dimensionals to give it a bit of a different look.

Here is the box up close with the teapot view.

Here is the other side of the box up close, but this is the teacup view.

And here is the top view of the box.

These are also very fun to make.  I am beginning to enjoy more and more making boxes like these and learning to make other boxes as well.  I hope more people order them so I can make it for them.

Taco Stuffed Shells

Once again, I combined my love of Mexican food and my husband's love of Italian food and made a dish called Taco Stuffed Shells.  It was surprisingly very good and my husband rated the meal a 9.  The reason he didn't give it a 10 was because there is always room for improvement when it comes to things.  He rarely gives anything I make a 10 so I'm not upset because I agree with what he says.

Today is my least favorite day of the week.  Mondays mean my husband goes back to work, Mondays mean I have to be home with the two kids for eleven hours while my husband is at work, Mondays mean cleaning and doing laundry, and Mondays mean five more days until my husband is off work for the weekend.  

Last night my daughter woke up in the middle of the night and I had a hard time getting her to fall back asleep.  So I caved in and brought her in our room.  She was all over the bed and our son was all over the bed, too.  Both kids woke up on time but ended up with a very full diaper.  I have to wash the bed sheets again and the comforter cause she peed through it.  I can't wait until my daughter finally sleeps through the night and hope and pray my son will sleep through the night once he becomes a toddler.

The only thing I forgot to do with last night's dinner on the recipe is that I forgot to add the chili powder.  So I can't wait to try to make this dish again but with the chili powder.  Here is the recipe for the Taco Stuffed Shells I made.

Taco Stuffed Shells

18 uncooked jumbo pasta shells
1 1/2 lbs. lean ground beef
1 (16 oz.) bottle taco sauce, divided
3 oz. fat-free cream cheese, cubed
2 tsp. chili powder
3/4 cup shredded reduced-fat Mexican cheese blend, divided
20 baked tortilla chip scoops, coarsely crushed 

Cook pasta according to package directions.  Meanwhile, in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat, cook beef until no longer pink; drain.  Add 1/2 cup taco sauce, cream cheese, and chili powder, cook and stir until blended.  Stir in 1/4 cup cheese blend.  Drain pasta and rinse in cold water; stuff each shell with about two tablespoons of the beef mixture.  Arrange in a 11x7 baking dish coated with cooking spray.  Spoon the remaining taco sauce over the top.  Cover and bake at 350 for 20 minutes.  Uncover; sprinkle with remaining cheese blend.  Bake 5-10 minutes longer or until heated through and the cheese is melted.  Sprinkle with chips.

Note to self: Buy the tortilla chip scoops when making this next time and use the chili powder.

Panera Bread

Yesterday we had Panera Bread for a late lunch/early dinner.  I always get their broccoli cheddar soup in the bread bowl with a large lemonade.  It was soo good!  I want to try to duplicate the soup recipe I found online this winter coming up.  It was a dreary day yesterday so that soup definitely hit the spot.  On our way home from lunch and running errands, it ended up raining.  We rarely get rain here, especially around my neighborhood.  

This morning my husband is making us breakfast.  He's making pancakes.  He makes us breakfast once or twice a month.  He usually makes pancakes or waffles though.  I don't make breakfast all that often because I don't eat it but I will when my husband makes breakfast.  Sometimes I cook french toast for breakfast in the morning but not that often.

We are finally slowly transitioning our son's bottle to a sippy cup.  He isn't doing as well as we thought, but I am confident he will get there.

Finally!

My son is finally drinking regular milk now and he is no longer drinking formula!  I don't know about you, but that milestone is big for me.  I am so happy that we don't have to buy formula anymore because it is expensive.  His doctor told us to put him on whole milk while my daughter is still drinking 2% milk.  But the two different milks is not a big problem for me.  I just find it interesting they drink different milks.

Last night we had the leftovers of the Super Supper.  I think we are all done with it as well so that's great because it's one less tupperware in the fridge.  Today we are going to Panera Bread for lunch.  First we are waiting for our daughter to wake up from her nap.  She fell asleep at 10:15am and she's still asleep, two hours later.  She must be hitting a growth spurt right now, it explains a lot.  I know she's got her left bottom molar tooth coming in.  I can't wait to get lunch at Panera Bread.  I had the biggest craving for their broccoli cheddar soup in the bread bowl with a lemonade throughout my pregnancy when I was pregnant with my son.  I finally gave into that craving when I was near the end of my pregnancy.

I finally finished A's orders today while the kids were napping.  Now I just need to take a picture of it and post it on here.  After I finished that, I started working on these cards that I'm making for some family members of ours.  I love the way it turned out and plan to post that here as well.  I stole the idea from someone I saw on YouTube but can't remember who.  But I love the way it looks and can't wait for them to receive their cards.  Speaking of family members, I made an accordion-style photo album for my husband's grandmother.  We found several pictures of the kids and printed them out and I made the photo album for her.  That way she can carry it around with her at the retirement home and show it off to her friends and show them her great grandkids.  She is one amazing woman and I think giving and making her a photo album with pictures of the kids will make her happy since she doesn't have Facebook or e-mail or anything in the technology world.  I can't wait til she receives it.

Once again, I have a load of laundry to do this weekend that I am absolutely dreading to start.  I just hate doing laundry.  But I'll start and hopefully finish tomorrow afternoon.  Sometime this week I have to also do a load of laundry of the kids clothes.  That one is always a nightmare to do because there is so many clothes!

Just keep swimming, just keep swimming...

Super Supper

I know, I know, with a name like Super Supper you have to wonder if it's really all that "super", right?  Well, I can vouch for the name of the recipe that it is indeed super!  My husband and I both love this dish.  But I will be honest and say that, the dish is great but cooking it is a pain in my butt!  It takes a lot of pots and pans to make the meal and it just creates a big huge cluster of a clutter in my kitchen on the counters and in the sink.  It was so good that we are having that for dinner tonight.  With that being said, here is the recipe for this Super Supper.

Super Supper

1 lb. ground beef
1 small onion, chopped
3/4 cup water
1 (6 oz.) can tomato paste
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, cubed
3/4 cup 2% milk
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
7 cups cooked egg wide noodles

In a large skillet, cook beef and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain.  Add the water, tomato paste, salt, and garlic powder.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 5-7 minutes or until heated through.  In a small saucepan, melt cream cheese over low heat, stirring constantly.  Gradually stir in milk and Parmesan cheese until blended.  Place noodles in a greased 13x9 baking dish.  Spread meat sauce over noodles.  Spoon cream cheese mixture evenly over the top.  Bake the casserole, uncovered, at 350 for 30-35 minutes or until heated through.

Note to self: I need to figure out an easy way to make this dish without making such a huge clutter of pots and pans in my kitchen.

Taco Bell

This is what I had for dinner last night.  Not just one taco, not two tacos, but three tacos!  Yep, I am a little piggy when it comes to tacos.  I don't know why, but I just love tacos.  I used to not like them when I wore braces, but once the braces came off, my love for Taco Bell emerged.  My husband had a doctor's appointment yesterday after work, so he picked up Taco Bell for dinner since I didn't know when he'd be home for me to start cooking dinner.  I sometimes love days like those because I don't have to cook.  But I hate it, too, because that means he comes home a little later than usual.  It is seriously so exhausting taking care of two little kids nonstop.  

My son has been getting into everything lately.  I can't leave him out of my sight.  He plays with the Dust Buster and loves to yank on the cord.  That's where he always gravitates towards when he's on the floor.  So I'm forever chasing after him and having him sit at a far distance away from the Dust Buster.  I guess I could always just move the thing, but I'm feeling lazy.  Haha.  

I am still working on A's orders, and I am almost done.  I'm also starting to make a card for some family members right now, too.  That's the one thing I am prone to doing.  I start something and then find something else to work on at the same time.  But at least with A's order, I am almost done.  I am about 85% complete and I should have it all done by the end of this weekend.  The cards I'm making for some family members shouldn't take me that long to finish.  The hardest part will be making six envelopes but even that isn't that hard to do.  Once I finish the cards for the family and A's orders, I need to work on making Mother's Day cards, a birthday card, and a wedding card.  

Yay.. tomorrow is Friday!

Sleep deprived

I am exhausted.  Very exhausted.  Before I had kids, I used to think the reasons parents were so tired was because of their newborn or infant waking them up at night needing to be fed.  I never anticipated that a toddler would be the reason they were so tired.  When my daughter was born, I prepared myself for sleepless nights.  But the first two weeks was tough for us.  We had to wake up every two hours to feed her.  But we took turns.  I fed her and put her to sleep, two hours later my husband would wake up to feed her and put her to sleep, then two hours later I would wake up and so forth.  But after that she slept through the night and didn't wake up in the middle of the night.  I remember thinking if  this is what parenting is all about, I want at least four more kids.  I was silly to think such a thing.

Now my daughter is almost three.  It takes us forever to get her to fall asleep.  One of us is always in the room with her, otherwise she will cry and end up waking up her brother.  She also wakes up in the middle of the night.  The other night I finally fell asleep a little after 9pm.  She woke up at 11:45pm the first time and I finally got her to fall asleep and made it back to my room at 12:15am.  Then she woke up again at 2:30am and I got her asleep at 2:45am.  And then she woke up at 4:05am and my husband just told me to bring her in our room.  Then at 5am my husband's alarm woke me up.  Then last night she woke up at 1:30am and wouldn't let me leave her room.  At one point I just told her I had to go to the bathroom and I left and she was quiet.  So I went back to my room and laid down and waited for her to fall asleep so I could go to sleep.  Then she woke up again at 3am and it was not easy getting her to calm down to go back to bed.  Every time I tried talking to her she would scream no and run away from me.  And if I stood in her room she'd be calm somewhat.  But because my body is so tired I wanted her to come with me so she can sleep in our bed.  So I left when she wasn't listening to me and when I left, she would cry hysterically.  She ended up waking up my son because she was so loud.  At the end I just ended up picking her up, and hurting my back at that, and putting her in the pack and play that's in our room while our son was sleeping in our room.

Coffee and I have become best friends again.  I missed it so much.

Tasty Hamburger Casserole

Last night I made a dish called Tasty Hamburger Casserole.  I made it before and we both loved it.  The only thing I didn't care for was that it takes so long to cook.  In a couple of weeks I will be no longer making casseroles for dinner.  I will be using my crockpot instead.  The hotter weather is coming up and I don't want to use the oven during that time.  But here's the recipe for last night's meal.

Tasty Hamburger Casserole

5 medium potatoes, peeled and sliced

1 small onion, chopped

1 lb. lean ground beef

1 (10 3/4 oz.) can condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted

1 (10 1/2 oz.) can condensed vegetarian vegetable soup, undiluted

1 cup crushed potato chips

In a greased 13x9 baking dish, layer with potatoes and onions.  Crumble beef over onion.  Spread soups over beef.  Cover and bake at 350 for 55 minutes.  Uncover; sprinkle with chips.  Bake 20 minutes longer or until the meat is no longer pink and vegetables are tender.

Another birthday

Over the weekend I made a birthday card for my husband's aunt whose birthday is this weekend coming up.  Since she doesn't live here, I made her a card to mail off.  It's a simple yet cute card that took me two days to finish.  The first day I just cut every thing up and the second day I just assembled it while my daughter and husband were in the backyard while my son was sleeping.  I used my Stampin' Up Strawberry Slush paper and ink pad, I also used the Stampin' Up Petite Petals punch to punch out the three flowers.  The sentiment is from the Sale a Bration from Stampin' Up as well.  For the background I used the Seeing Dots Cuttlebug Embossing Folder to give the card a different look.

This week I need to finish working on A's order.  I'm almost done with it, I just need to do some last minute things to it.  But I should finish it by next week when she wanted it.  I really enjoyed making the goodie boxes and the teabag holders.  It was so much fun.  I hope I can do it again for other people.  

I don't know what is going on with my daughter.  But she slept easily last night but then she woke up three times last night.  I barely got any sleep last night.  I finally fell asleep at 9:00pm and then at 11:45pm she woke up.  I finally made it back to my room at 12:15am after she fell asleep.  Then she woke up again at 2:30am, and I made it back to my room at 2:45am.  Finally she woke up at 4:05am and my husband just said to bring her in our room to sleep since it was almost 5am.  I don't know how she's not so tired and I don't know why she keeps fighting sleep when it is time for naps and bed time.

Dogs, dogs, dogs everywhere!

Yesterday we went to Petapalooza with our kids but left our dog at home.  I just didn't know how it would turn out taking her and the two kids.  But we had fun.  We saw lots of dogs and I saw a few birds, too.  I am very passionate about animals, especially dogs, most importantly, chihuahuas.  I have always had an obsession and passion for dogs, especially chihuahuas.  So it always makes me happy when we go to Petapalooza.  We used to go every year but then we had kids and stopped for a couple of years.

We saw this one family who had four chihuahuas and they all had on these snazzy outfits and sunglasses!  I fell in love and had to take a picture to post on here.  They (the dogs) kind of reminded me of my dog.  She is so laidback that she doesn't care if I put her in clothes, shoes, sunglasses, whatever.  I ran into a lady who had a dog that looked like mine and she was looking for a girlfriend for her dog.  Next year we will bring our dog again.  The only part that wasn't fun was the long walk from where it was held at and where we parked.  It's definitely not easy with kids.  Next year we plan to park closer to the event.

I made a card yesterday for my husband's aunt.  I'm almost done with it so we can mail it off this week since her birthday is this weekend coming up.  The month of May will be my busiest month as far as crafting goes.  I have to make four Mother's Day cards, a birthday card, and a wedding card.  In June I just have one birthday card to make and just one birthday card for the month of July.  Then I won't have to make a birthday card until September.  I like keeping busy though, makes the days go by fast.

Today is my son's first birthday!  I can't believe he's one.  Time flew by that's for sure.  Last year at this time I was in the hospital giving birth to him and one of the nurses was giving me a hard time because I kept throwing up after I drank water cause I was so thirsty.  It is definitely not fun when the anethesia wears off.

Corny Chicken Bake

I think it is safe to say that my husband and I love to eat chicken and turkey.  We rarely eat pork or red meat so we opt for chicken and turkey.  It's healthier for you and won't clog your arteries like red meat and pork will do to you eventually.  Last night for dinner I made Corny Chicken Bake.  My husband and I love this dish because it is so simple and tastes amazing.  Amazing isn't even the right word for it.  It is just seriously so good!  The best part of this dish is that we have everything in our house to make it!  Here's the recipe.

Corny Chicken Bake

3 cups crushed corn bread stuffing
1 (14 3/4 oz.) can cream-style corn
1/3 cup finely chopped onion
1 celery rib, chopped
4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves (4 oz. each)
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted
3 tbs. spicy brown mustard

In a large bowl, combine the stuffing, corn, onion, and celery.  Spoon into a greased 11x7 baking dish.  Top with chicken.  In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, butter, and mustard; spoon over chicken.  Bake, uncovered, at 400 for 25-30 minutes or until a meat thermometer reads 170.

See, easy peasey.  I hope you enjoy this dish as much as we did.

Lazy dinner

Last night I didn't have to cook so that was nice to take a break from cooking.  My husband went to pick up Taco Bell on his way home yesterday.  After he got off work he went to go donate blood.  He donates blood every two months.  He used to donate more often than that but now that we have kids and I am home with them all the time, my husband now only donates every two months.  We have an agreement that every time he donates blood, he has to buy dinner.  It's quick and easy to go pick up Taco Bell.  So, that is what I had for dinner.

Today is Friday!  I am happy about that.  It felt like this week took forever to end.  But I'm glad it's Friday nonetheless.  I'm hoping my daughter and son fall asleep easily tonight so I can work on A's orders some more.  I'm about 75% done with everything.

I need to wash the bed sheets today sometime, too.  My daughter fell asleep in our room last night and sometime in the middle of the night she peed through her diaper, through her pants, and onto our bed sheets.  So, time to wash thje bed sheets today and maybe I'll wash the comforter next weekend.

Enchilada Stuffed Shells

I finally got a chance to make the Enchilada Stuffed Shells for dinner last night.  All I have to say is that it was more work than I thought it would be.  When I was looking at the recipe before I made it, I thought it would be easy.  But it ended up being not easy and very messy to make.  It also didn't help that my shells were overly cooked so they were very soft and break-able.  I blame my husband on that.  He was in the kitchen with me while I was cooking telling me about his day.  The only thing I would do differently on this dish is use more pasta shells.  The recipe calls for 15 pasta shells, and I ended up needing a little more.  But it was a really good meal.  It was so good that we didn't have any leftovers.  Here's the recipe!

Enchilada Stuffed Shells

15 uncooked jumbo pasta shells
1 lb. lean ground turkey
1 (10 oz.) can enchilada sauce
1/2 tsp. dried minced onion
1/4 tsp. dried basil
1/4 tsp. dried oregano
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 cup fat free refried beans
1 (4 oz.) cup shredded reduced-fat cheddar cheese

Cook pasta according to package directions; drain and rinse in cold water.  In a nonstick skillet, cook turkey over medium heat until no longer pink; drain.  Stir in enchilada sauce and seasonings; set aside.  Place a rounded teaspoonful of refried beans in each pasta shell, then fill with turkey mixture.  Place in an 11x7 baking dish coated with cooking spray.  Cover and bake at 350 for 25 minutes.  Uncover; sprinkle with cheese.  Bake for five minutes longer or until cheese is melted.

Note:  I didn't have cheddar cheese when I made this.  I ended up using Mexican cheddar cheese and it tasted really good.

Birthday dinner cancelled

Last night I had planned to make my husband Enchilada Stuffed Shells for dinner.  Unfortunately that did not happen.  My mother called me to let me know she was in town and wanted to go out to dinner with all of us.  So, I decided that I will make them tonight instead.  My mother doesn't live here so it's always nice to see her when she comes out here.  The next time we go visit her will be in the summer.  She comes out here once a month so we go out to dinner when she does come here.  It just would have been a little nice to know she was going to be here at least a week in advance so I could have planned that instead of taking stuff out to make dinner and then having to put it all away again.

I have been busy working on my customer A's order for the past couple of days.  I have all of the teabag boxes done.  I am now working on the goodie boxes.  I have almost all of them assembled.  All that is left for me to do is put the images on them and put the belly band around it and put a flower on top of the box.  After I am done with that, I can take pictures of both products and post it on here.  But I am happy that I am almost done.  I have a week and a half to go to finish them and give it to her.  I hope I can get more people to order the goodie boxes cause they are seriously so much fun to make!  

This weekend is my son's first birthday party.  We are going to smoke some ribs and I think my husband wants me to make some coleslaw to go with it.  I will post a picture of the coleslaw I make and even the recipe because it is pretty darn good coleslaw.  It's not too watery and it's not too sweet either.  It is actually the perfect consistency of what coleslaw should be.

I have also been compiling a list of all the images I can cut out to put on the goodie boxes.  One of our friends has been helping me tell people about the goodie boxes since she knows people who do parties and those goodie boxes would be an excellent touch.  She said that having a list of all the images for the boxes might help people get a better idea of what they want on their goodie box.  So I have been making a list for her.

I promise tomorrow's blog will have the picture and recipe of the Enchilada Stuffed Shells that I am going to be making tonight.

Happy Birthday!

Today is my husband's birthday!  I am going to make Enchilada Stuffed Shells for dinner tonight.  It is a cross between my favorite food (Mexican) and his favorite food (Italian).  I can't wait to make it.  I need to make him a birthday card when my son takes his second nap.  If he does that is.  If not, I'll just go in my already made card stash and find a birthday card for him.  

Right now I can see the clean laundry basket out of the corner of my eye.  It has clothes in there that need to be folded and put away.  But I just have no desire to put them away.  Why is it that doing laundry is just so exhausting for me?  I used to love doing laundry and hate doing the dishes.  Now I don't mind doing the dishes but hate doing laundry.  I hope I find the willpower to do them soon because I don't want them to just sit in the laundry basket waiting forever for me to put them away when I have another load of laundry that needs to be done.

Yesterday my daughter napped really well.  But bed time was another story.  It took forever for her to fall asleep.  I have been giving her my old iPhone to let her play a game on there to help her fall asleep.  But I don't know why, but she's not wanting to anymore.  I need to keep finding different things for her to do before sleeping so I don't have to always be in her room.  I haven't had to stay in her room to wait for her to fall asleep in almost a week now.  I think this summer we are going to stop having her wake up at 5am.  One thing I have learned about as far as parenting goes is that everything and everyday is all trial and error.  If one thing doesn't work, try another.  Keep finding something that will work for your toddler/infant because they are inconsistent on some things.

Congratulatory card

My customer T whose daughter had the baby shower and needed the 36 whale themed goodie boxes had her baby a couple of days ago!  T texted me a picture of her new grandson and he is so adorable!  I have baby fever now.  I want another baby.  But I know it won't happen, but it's something I can just yearn from afar.  So, this weekend I made T a congratulations card for her.  I cut the butterfly with my Create a Critter cartridge and I used the color green because that's her favorite color.  And I know she loves butterflies so I chose this image.  On the inside of this card I stamped the sentiment "Happiness is a butterfly".  She loved the card.  That makes me happy.  I love making others happy.

Last weekend I worked on A's order some more but didn't get a chance to finish.  I would say I am about 60% done.  I hope I can get a lot more done this weekend but we'll see.

This weekend we are having a birthday party for our son's first birthday.  I can't believe he's going to be one this weekend.  It seems just like yesterday that we went to the hospital to give birth to him.  Now here he is about to turn one, he's crawling everywhere, and he's into everything.  We are truly blessed with him and our daughter.

Kielbasa and Pepper Casserole

Yesterday for lunch I treated my husband to Mexican food.  It was my treat for our anniversary since on Friday night he picked up some ground beef and we made hamburgers out of it.  We don't eat red meat that often so it was a treat to us.  Something about a grilled hamburger is soo good.  I diced up some onions to go in the ground beef and added some salt, pepper, garlic salt, and Worcestershire sauce on it.  It turned out really good.  We plan to grill hamburgers up at least once every other month because it was so good!

Last night I made Kielbasa and Pepper Casserole.  I totally forgot to take a picture of it before I dished it up on my plate.  So I took a picture as soon as I remembered before devouring the whole thing.  That is why the picture of the meal looks a little scarce.  It was so good, but the only motifications I will do next time is to cut up the kielbasa a bit smaller, add mushrooms, and more peppers.  Here's the recipe!

Kielbasa and Pepper Casserole

1/2 lb. smoked kielbasa or Polish sausage, cut into 1/2-inch slices
4 small red potatoes, halved
1 medium onion, halved and sliced
1 medium sweet red pepper, cut into one-inch pieces
2 tbs. olive
1/8 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
minced fresh parsley

In a small bowl, combine the sausage, potatoes, onion, and red pepper.  Drizzle with oil; sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Toss to coat.  Transfer to a greased 1-quart baking dish.  Cover and bake at 375 for 45 minutes.  Stir in cream; cover and bake 10-15 minutes longer or until vegetables are tender and the cream has thickened.  Sprinkle with parsley.

Is it summer yet?

I am looking forward to the summer because my husband will be home everyday.  He'll be able to help me with the kids which is always nice.  But this summer I am hoping I can start to really work on making more cards because I'll have an extra hand to help me watch the kids.  

Right now my son is crawling everywhere.. it's so hard to even go to the bathroom with a peace of mind and not fear him getting into something he shouldn't.  He's even starting to go from crawling to a standing position which scares me to no end.  I know if he fell it is not that far of a fall, but it's still terrifying.  You don't want to see your kids get hurt and you definitely don't like the sounds of your children crying from getting hurt either.  At least that's how I feel.  

I know with my daughter I can do what needs to be done and be assured that she won't get into anything, but I do fear her hurting her brother sometimes.  The other day she picked up one of her toys that was made of plastic and she chucked it at her brother's head as he was watching tv on his swing.  He cried hysterically, of course, and I comforted him as best as I could.  But I am doing the best that I can when I'm home with the kids while my husband is working.

This summer I plan to

Household chore I hate...

You know what household chore I absolutely hate the most?  No, it's not cleaning.  I don't mind it actually because it's very relaxing for some reason.  But to clean up after a toddler and an infant is a challenge I have yet to master.  Maybe one day when they're a little older and can help me clean up it will be easier.  It's not dishes either surprisingly since I used to hate doing them.  But my husband actually bought me this cool handy gadget thing where it looks like a wand and you put dish soap in it and you can wash your dishes that way.  I love it!  It makes doing dishes like a fraction of a percent better than I did before when I was using sponges.  I actually hate doing laundry!  I hate it with a passion.  It piles up day after day after day, week after week after week, month after month after month.  Not only does it pile up, but I have a certain way of doing laundry and I know that's what makes it more time consuming but there is a method to my madness in all this, I promise.

I make sure my husband's and my clothes are separated by whites and darks.  And not only do I make sure they're separated, but I have to go through each laundry basket to make sure the whites aren't with the dark basket or vice versa.  But not only do I have to do that, but I also make sure all our shirts and pants are inside out.  Sometimes when we are tired we forget to turn them inside out and put them in the proper laundry basket.  So when laundry time comes around, I have to make sure each shirt and pants are inside out and in the right basket.  The reason I wash my clothes inside out is because when you're wearing it, you build up sweat on the inside.  And chasing after an infant who is crawling towards no man's land, you build up sweat and it stinks.  So, I wash my clothes inside out making sure that the laundry detergent gets to that area to make it cleaner and smell nicer.

I don't mind making sure the clothes are in the right basket.  I also don't mind putting the clothes inside out.  I even enjoy putting the clothes in the washer and putting the yummy lavender smelling laundry detergent in.  Sometimes I don't mind putting the clothes in the dryer, but it gets time consuming because I'm one of those people who shake their clothes before putting it in the dryer.  I never used to do this before my husband told me prefers his clothes in the dryer that way.  Now I do it out of habit.  But I absolutely can not stand folding the clothes and putting them away!  It is seriously exhausting.  I have a basket full of clothes that has been in the clean laundry basket for a little over a week.  Little by little I am folding it and putting it away.  But I hate it.  I need to just clone myself so I can have so much done.

Wedded bliss

Today is my husband's and my anniversary.  Our wedding anniversary that is.  We celebrate a lot of anniversaries with each other.  We also celebrate our dating anniversary, and our engagement anniversary.  We have now been married for four years, and it sure feels like we have been married far longer than that.

I think what makes our marriage work is that we communicate well with each other now.  Before we had major problems in the communication department.  But we are doing a lot better now and we have grown to appreciate each other.  He is my best friend, my lover, my everything.  I don't think I could ever picture my life without him and our children in it.  He completes me in many ways that I just never thought I would be blessed to have in my life.

I am truly blessed with everything I have been given.  I love my husband, our children, our home; even though it could use an upgrade by buying a bigger house, but I won't get into that, I also love where we live.  Life is good!

Tasty Tuna Casserole

Here is what I made for dinner last night.  It is the tuna casserole with a slight twist.  I say that because I have never made tuna casserole like this before.  Mine usually has some mayonnaise, frozen vegetables, and other stuff.  My husband loves this dish because it reminds him of times him and his father, his father's friend, his brother, and his grandfather would all go upstate to hunt.  His grandmother would make this dish and they would just heat it up and eat it.  But this version I make doesn't have mozzerella in it but he said it still tastes pretty close to what his grandmother made.  Here is the recipe.

Tasty Tuna Casserole

2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni 
1 (12 oz.) can white water-packed solid tuna
1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce
4 oz. reduced-fat cream cheese, cubed
1 small onion, finely chopped
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. dried oregano

Cook macaroni according to package directions.  Meanwhile, in a large bowl combine the remaining ingredients.  Drain macaroni; stir into tuna mixture.  Transfer to a 2-quart baking dish coated with cooking spray.  Cover and bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until heated through.

Makes 4 servings.

Curried Chicken with Asparagus

Last night I was going to make a tuna casserole for dinner, but I realized that I ran out of noodles to make it.  So, I made Curried Chicken with Asparagus.  We ate that and watched the final game of the NCAA Championship as well.  I am happy to say that Duke won.  I didn't want Wisconsin to win.  But here is the recipe for the curried chicken with asparagus.  I hope you enjoy.  The only thing I did differently is that I didn't put the curry powder the recipe asks for.  But it was pretty good.  My husband said it tasted kinda soupy, but I loved it.

Curried Chicken with Asparagus

1 (10 3/4 oz.) can condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1 tsp. lemon juice
1/2 tsp. curry powder
1/8 tsp. pepper
1 (10 oz.) pkg. frozen asparagus spears, thawed
1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 tbs. canola oil
1/4 cup cheddar cheese

In a large bowl, combine the soup, mayonnaise, lemon juice, curry powder, and pepper; set aside.  Place half of the asparagus in a greased 8-inch square baking dish.  Spread with half of the soup mixture.  In a large skillet, saute chicken in canola oil until no longer pink.  Place chicken over soup mixture.  Cover and bake at 375 for 20 minutes.  Uncover; sprinkle with cheese.  Bake 5-8 minutes longer or until cheese is melted.

Spring Break has ended

I'm sad that Spring Break has ended.  I think it ended too fast because the week went by so fast and I feel like nothing got done.  But two more months and then my husband will be home for the summer.  I can't wait!

The kids are doing pretty good.  For the most part anyway.  Right now they are watching their favorite show while I do this.  But all I want to do is go back to bed.  I slept at a decent time last night and my daughter did wake up in the middle of the night.  But she woke up at 3:30am, but fell back asleep on our bed.  I honestly don't know how she's not so exhausted from the lack of sleep she gets.  She falls asleep between 8:00-8:30pm every night and wakes up in the middle of the night between 3:00-4:00am every night.  She naps but not enough, I don't think.  I thought nap time and bed time would be easy, but it hasn't really been that easy for us.  We still struggle getting her to sleep easily.  But the other day, it was easy getting her to fall asleep during nap time and bed time.  But it hasn't been consistent which is not fun.

I thought about potty training her some more today but I have to keep an eye on my son, too, so that makes it tough to try to sit on the floor with her and encourage her to go potty.  I might just try potty training her again when summer vacation gets here because then my husband can help me watch one child.  Potty training is seriously so physically, mentally, and emotionally exhausting and my least favorite thing as far as parenting goes.  But I know she'll be potty trained eventually.  I just wish it was now.

Happy Easter!

It's Easter today.  I didn't take my kids to go see the Easter Bunny this year.  We didn't dye Easter eggs either.  This is the first year my husband didn't get me an Easter basket, too.  But in a few days will be our wedding anniversary.  April is a very busy month for me.  It has my wedding anniversary, my husband's birthday, my son's birthday, and Easter; all in one month!  It is exhausting just thinking about it.

Last night my husband and I watched a college basketball game when the kids were sleeping.  We watched Duke vs. Michigan during dinner and watched Kentucky vs. Wisconsin when the kids were finally asleep.  I was really hoping that Kentucky would have won because I wanted to see them go all the way undefeated.  But I guess that didn't happen since Wisconsin won.

Tonight for dinner I am not cooking anything too spectacular.  I wish I had planned out a nice meal since it's Easter, but I wasn't thinking about that when I was planning the meals for the weeks.  Tomorrow I am making a classic Tuna Casserole with a little twist to it.  My husband said it reminds him of the tuna casserole his grandmother used to make.

Last night while we were watching the basketball game I worked on A's project some more.  I am now about 30% done.  I still have so much to do but I'm confident I'll finish on time for her.  I think today I am going to finish folding the laundry and put it away.  I'm tired of staring at the laundry basket and feeling lazy about folding it.  Most days I wish I could clone myself so I can get so much done.

It's almost over

I am so sad.  Spring Break is almost over.  I can't believe it is already Saturday and my husband goes back to work in a couple of days.  This week went by too fast and I feel like I got absolutely nothing accomplished at home.  I still have a load of laundry that needs to be put away.  Maybe I'll do it today when my kids nap.  Spring Break ended rather too fast but summer vacation is coming up so that is one thing I am looking forward to.  I'm not looking forward to my birthday getting here but I can't avoid the inevitable.

For the past three nights I have been working on A's project.  I haven't finished yet, but I am also taking my time because I have three more weeks to finish.  Sometimes I like having a long time to finish something for a customer, but sometimes I hate it because my fingers get restless and I want to keep working on it.  I haven't really made a card in forever and a year.  I should really start making them again so I have more of a variety on my etsy shop.  But right now my main focus is working and finishing A's project.  I would say I am about 20% complete with it.  Maybe I will work on it some more today when my husband takes our daughter in the backyard to play on the swing.  Let's hope I get some stuff done today.

Last night was a nightmare and a half getting my daughter to bed.  She didn't nap til a bit later yesterday because we went out to do some grocery shopping and run some errands.  At 2:30pm she finally fell asleep in the living room.  But we woke her up at 3:00pm so she didn't get too much sleep which would make putting her to sleep at night difficult.  At 7:30pm, it was bedtime and took my daughter to her room and tried to get her to fall asleep.  She usually falls asleep between 7:45-8:00pm.  But last night, she finished her milk and got out of her bed and proceeded to play.  Every time I put her in her bed, she would get out.  So, to avoid the same thing happening over and over, I just decided to let her stay on the floor and have her fall asleep there.  I figured by the time she fell asleep I would just pick her up and put in her bed and cover her up.  Haha.  What a joke.  When she finally did fall asleep, I picked her up and put her in her bed and she woke right up and started screaming and crying hysterically.  At the end, it took both my husband and I to put her sleep and it took almost two hours for to her finally fall asleep.  I don't understand why she keeps fighting sleep.  I can only hope and pray that things will get easier for us with both children.

I miss sleep

I remember before moving in with my boyfriend, husband now, and it was just my dog and myself.  It was so easy back then because I didn't have to wake up every morning at 5am.  I miss those days when I could sleep in.  I forget what it feels like sleeping in.  I wake up every morning at 5am no matter what time I go to sleep the night before.  I am starting to drink more coffee every day to keep myself awake, and sometimes I'm still tired.  But everyone keeps telling me that it gets easier when my kids get older.  For some reason, I don't think it will.  But I honestly wouldn't trade this life for anything.  As much as I want to sleep in until four in the afternoon some days, I love my life.  

I never thought I would be a wife and/or a mother.  I love the happiness my children give me.  It is a feeling I can not even describe when I see my children smile at me or when I can make them laugh.  So, even though I am incredibly exhausted every morning, when I see my children every day, I put my exhausted feelings aside and put on a happy face.  Because like my husband says, "they're only this little once".  So I am going to make the best of it and treasure every day and every moment that I have with them because I know soon enough they will be off to college doing their own thing.

Traveling with children = No Fun

Have you ever tried flying with two little children and a dog with your significant other?  We did last year.  We went to New York to visit family with our two children and dog.  It was a nightmare and a half.  Someone suggested to me that I should tire my daughter out so by the time we got on the plane, she would be so tired she would fall asleep.  So, I did that.  But by the time we got in line to go through security, she was not happy.  She was cranky, she was hungry, she was tired.  But we made through and on the plane was not fun either.

Once we got on the plane and waited to leave the airport, she was crying hysterically and nothing I did or said could cheer her up.  At one point on our flight, the lady behind me said to my husband "control your kid".  I was mad because I was doing the best that I could.  It's not like I want to hear her cry through the whole flight.  Then when nothing was being done to make that lady happy, she ended up kicking the back of my seat.  I told my husband and he told the flight attendant.  The flight attendants were not happy about that and when we landed security escorted her out and had a talk with her.

On our way home, I made the prudent choice by having my daughter nap before we were to leave to go to the airport.  Everything was pleasant on our way there, she was happy, she was not even cranky.  But when we got on the plane and got ready to take off, things hit a slight snag.  We had to sit on the plane and wait one hour and ten minutes before taking off.  Due to the weather on the north route, we had to wait for the planes ahead of us to taxi off.  They said there were like eleven planes ahead of us and we had to wait about five to ten minutes per plane taking off.  And while we were waiting, she was still pleasant.  But once we were up in the air, she had her meltdown.  

I think the next time we fly I am just going to make a Quiet Book.  I will have to make two because if my son has one and my daughter doesn't, it will just be a catastrophic disaster.  So, I will plan the next time we fly or take long road trips to make a Quiet Book for them.  What other ideas do you have?

April Fools Day!

As a child, I used to hate this day.  My classmates would always tell me things and I, being the naive child, would believe them, and they would shout out "April Fools!" and I would just feel so crestfallen that they would do that to me.  As an adult, I'm still the naive little girl, and my husband sometimes pulls pranks on me.  I want to prank him, but I don't know what I want to do to get him real good.  I had ideas on what to do, but it just seems so wrong to do, so I probably won't end up doing it.  

I can't wait for my kids to get older so I can do stuff like this on them.  I also can't wait til they're a little older so I can do the whole Elf on a Shelf thing.  I am looking forward to doing that!  There are so many things I want to do with my children and have them experience.  I never got to experience a lot of things as a child, so I want my children to be able to experience things that I never got to.

I can't believe Spring Break is halfway over.  I'm sad.  But I know summer vacation is almost here so I am looking forward to that.  We've been eating a lot of leftovers lately so no new recipes to post.  But I'll post one tomorrow.