How it all began...

Today over at Kelly's Korner it's show us your life Friday again. This Friday is all about your engagement.

Our engagement is short and straight to the point, it's not mushy or sentimental, but it's ours and someday I will get to tell my grandchildren all about it.

Daniel and I started dating on March 19th 2005, we both knew at our one anniversary that we would end up getting married and I was secretly hoping for the engagement ring to seal that fate. March 19th 2006 came and went with no ring, no big deal, I knew it would happen eventually.

Shortly after that date we started discussing buying a house together, we spent weekend after weekend looking at houses trying to figure out what we wanted and didn't want in our first home. After yet another Sunday looking for a home we made a dinner pit stop at one of our local Olive Gardens...salad and bread sticks is all I have to say about that...lol. It just so happened that right outside the window was a jewelry store. I hinted around that maybe we should stop in and check rings out since we were in the area that way he would be more knowledgeable in what I was looking for in an engagement ring. I do not wear jewelry other than my engagement ring, wedding band, and my birthstone ring from Addison, so I wanted to make sure he bought me a ring that I would wear for the rest of my life. I wasn't interested in eventually trading up like so many women are today. Anyway, much to my surprise he agreed so we stopped in and started looking around. I of course fell in love right away with my engagement ring but I was more than prepared to walk out empty handed to wait for the day when Daniel would have the money set aside to purchase it and officially propose. I still can't believe it but when he saw just how much I loved that ring he stopped me when I was handing it back to the clerk. Daniel said I could keep it on and we bought it right there on the spot. I got proposed to in the middle of the jewelry store with a bunch of sales clerks standing around...so romantic...lol. The official date was May 7th 2006 and we were married on May 5th 2007, almost exactly a year later.

I can't believe how fast these three years have flown by and I can't begin to describe how great it is to know we still truly love one another and that we have the most gorgeous little girl in the world. We both had come to the realization that together we may never become parents so it's a wonderful feeling to be able to gaze upon our daughter knowing that she is what happened when two lives joined together. It may have taken over two years but she's here and we are happy and we are even more happy knowing that baby #2 is on it's way. Yes, you read that right! Baby #2 is expected to arrive February 20th 2011. No we are not crazy and yes I realize that we could very well have two kids under the age of one for a few short days but we are tickled pink. We also have come to terms with the fact that Addison could be blowing out candles and opening her gifts in between Mommy's contractions at the hospital. A year and a half ago I prayed for a baby...now look at us...we are about to have a second! The pregnancy is still very early so we are praying that the outcome is the same as it was for Addison...that I carry and give birth to a healthy little boy or girl. I can't wait to share the journey of our second pregnancy along with updates on Addison's growth and new feats.

My lifeline...

I knew when I got pregnant with Addison that my life was going to change dramatically. I knew life would no longer revolve around me or Daniel and that everything we had, both physically and emotionally, would go into raising this little girl.

I will be the first to tell you that I have had my moments of utter despair with this little girl. Those moments where I just want to lay her in her bed and shut the door on her crying and screaming just so I can go into my room and shut the door and sob out of defeat. I quickly remind myself though that three years ago I was sobbing in my room thinking that we would never become parents. That feeling of defeat is one I could never describe to you and one that you would never understand unless you have experienced it first hand. I catch myself holding her and looking deep into her eyes and it has still not fully sunk in that this little girl, this bundle of absolute joy standing on my lap is mine...all mine, and Daniel's to by the way. I conceived this child, I carried this child within me for ten long months, and what still blows my mind is that this child actually came out of my body, naturally...with the help of a few drugs. Will it ever sink in that I don't have to give her back? That her Mommy won't be by later to pick her up?

Since creating this particular blog and becoming a Mommy I have been more fascinated by the other thousands of blogs out there dedicated to families/children by women. I have been witness to amazing birth stories, birthdays, and rights of passage into transitioning from a baby to a child. I have also stumbled by what seems like so many blogs announcing illness and death in these very women's young babies and children. I am reminded on a daily basis just how blessed I am and how fortunate that I was to be able to successfully carry Addison for ten months knowing that in the end she would be healthy. I am reminded of this because of this family and their newest bundle Cohen. Two days after his birth and after several months of knowing that he had a broken heart, he underwent open heart surgery. I cry for this family just thinking about it and I cry knowing that their situation could have easily been our situation. The thought of Addison going through such a traumatic experience so soon after birth is traumatizing to me. The thought alone of something happening to my baby sends me into a tailspin. The thought of her being broken and me not being able to fix her is one of the most terrifying things I think I could ever experience and I pray every single day that it is one I will never have to go through.


Like I said above, I knew my entire emotional being would be focused around Addison but never until I stumbled upon Cohen and his families blog did I know just how big of a deal that would be. I would die for my child and I would kill for my child, that is how deep my emotions run concerning her. My love for Addison is unmeasurable and borderline obsession. I know deep down inside that no matter how much I love my husband and my family, I will never love anyone, not even them, as much as I love this little girl and her future siblings.


I have gone from being concerned about my own self being and existing in the world in which we are currently living, to being scared of what I may have done to my daughter by giving birth to her. Will she enjoy the freedoms and the luxuries that we have taken for granted...twenty, even thirty years from now? The thought of her suffering at the hands of this often times cruel world scares me and upsets me. I wish we lived in the land of lollipops and cupcakes overshadowed by sunshine and rainbows but alas we don't. I can only hope that ten, twenty, heck even sixty years from now she can still open her front door without the fear of death, of being able to watch her children play in their front yard, and of always being able to obtain the proper nourishment and medical needs.

Lord how I love this child! I wish upon her a lifetime of happiness and happy ever afters and I pray that God allows me to witness her every step of the way.

Chicken Bean Burritos

I haven't done a big grocery trip in a few weeks so we have been eating lots of quick fix meals that aren't necessarily worth blogging about which explains my absence. Pay day is tomorrow and we are going shopping whether we like it or not!

Tonight I needed to "throw" something together and this is what I came up with. I must say I was pleasantly surprised with how well they turned out. I wish we would have had some sour cream but we were out. The fact we are out of sour cream in this house goes to show you how long it has been since I have gone shopping. Sour cream and Katie is like butter and Paula Deen...they go hand in hand. This meal literally took less than ten minutes to get together!
Chicken and Bean Burritos

Ingredients:
1 (16 oz) can refried beans
1 (9.75 oz) can cooked chicken
1 cup salsa
2 cups shredded cheese
1 tbsp. butter
cumin
paprika
onion powder
salt
garlic powder
8 flour tortillas

Directions:
1.) In a medium sauce pan add beans and salsa, mix well and cook on medium low heat.

2.) In a small skillet on medium heat add butter and chicken. Break apart chicken into small pieces and then add cumin, onion powder, salt, garlic powder, and paprika. A dash or two of each is plenty! Cook until warmed through.

3.) Warm tortilla shells in microwave for fifteen seconds.

4.) Add chicken to beans and mix well.

5.) Add 1/3 cup bean mix to tortilla shell and then top with shredded cheese.

Serve along side Old El Paso Mexican Rice and you have a quick Mexican themed meal. This meals serves four.

Busy Weekend...

I sorta fell off the face of the blogging world now didn't I? I apologize I have just been really lazy and haven't gotten around to it. I did create one post but blogger wouldn't allow me to upload pictures to it on the several occasions I tried so I just gave up on it.

We had a very busy weekend here. Saturday morning at 9:45 thank you...my sister Megan graduated from high school. She is glad to be done and I can't say as I blame her.

Graduation was followed by a nice nap and then a cook out with some family. Sunday was our only lazy day and we didn't accomplish a darn thing...it was lovely...lol.

Addison and I did spend the night with my step-dad, his girlfriend Kathy, and with Megan on Sunday night in preparation of the big graduation party on Monday. I thought we would go over to help cook and I was making cake balls. SOMEBODY was of no help...she fell asleep on the job as shown below...lol.

Not only did Megan graduate from high school but my brother Steve is graduating from college on June 12th...they did a joint party that way family only had to come in once.

Addison went swimming for the first time on Monday and I think she is still debating on whether or not she will be doing it again. My little cousins Maria and Monica were having a good time with her. They are the youngest of six kids so I think they were amazed that there was a kid smaller than them. Monica kept rubbing Addison's head!


What's a graduation party without a little Rock Band??

Not much else to report, right now I am concentrating on the thunder storm going on! Thank god for the internet because the satellite is out.

Three Months Old & Counting...

Yesterday Addison turned three months old. I can't believe how much my little baby has changed in just these past three months. It's weird because when I think three months it seems like it was just yesterday but when I look at her, I swear she has been with us for forever. In fact I have trouble remembering what it was like before Addison came home with us. I sat at our computer desk last night thinking to myself that just three months ago it was just me and the dogs at home and now we have this little baby who was talking away in her swing watching television. It's amazing how things change once a child enters into the picture. What is even more amazing is how much better things are with a child.

We had her two month well visit this past Friday, which was a month late, and she weighed in at 12 1/2 lbs and was 23 1/2 in long. The kid is average! We have twiddled our thumbs for a month now concerning her two months shot which is why we are just now doing them. We went back and forth between should she have them, should she only have some of them, as first time parents we are new to this and really want to educate ourselves before we start allowing all of these vaccinations so we took our time. Friday was not a good day for us. Not because I was absolutely dreading her getting these shots because I just couldn't bear the thought of my little baby being poked three times, but because she was sick. Since Daniel thought he would have to go into work Friday and we knew this appointment was scheduled I went ahead and took a vacation day from work. That way I could spend the entire day with my little princess plus do some running around with my sister Nikki and her son Dylan. We started our little adventure back at my work so that my step-mom could show off the grand kids. Back in the day there was a whole slew of my relation working there, now it's just down to me and my step-mom. In the mortgage industry it's amazing that we are still standing.

Anyway, to make a long story short, crap hit the fan about five minutes after we arrived. I have never in the three months this child has been alive, seen her cry and carry on like she did. It was almost embarrassing because all of these women could hear her screaming and one by one they started making their way into the bathroom to see what was wrong with the child and offer their advice on how to make her stop. None of the advice worked by the way, she just stopped on her own after about 20 minutes, or what seemed like 3 hours.

Now we quickly hightailed it out of there before meltdown number 2 occurred and she ended up doing just fine the rest of the day. We hit up Sam's Club, Babies R Us where we FINALLY found a one piece bathing suit in her size, and Logan's Roadhouse for some lunch. Her appointment was at 3:30 and we made it there with no time to spare. She was fine while we sat and waited to be called back even played around with Aunt Nikki a little bit. They call us back...I proceed to strip her down to her undiewears and it happens...meltdown #2 of the day. Over the course of the next HOUR they determine that she has a temperature, needs to switch over to soy formula, and oh by the way...possibly has strep throat. Say what?? Monday through Friday she does not leave the house and she really only goes to see family on the weekends...how in the lords name does she have strep throat?? The test came back negative but her throat was very red and very raw so they sent the swab out for further testing. We still haven't heard anything so they must not have found anything.

They gave her some Tylenol, a generic brand so please calm down if you immediately thought recall, and proceeded to send us home...for a very, very long and miserable weekend. She was upset all Friday night but woke up just fine Saturday morning. We ran a few errands and came home and by 5 or so the meltdowns began again. This time it lasted until about 10 Saturday night. Nobody slept, the husband and I got into a major fight Saturday evening, and she proceeded to get constipated from the formula change which did not help things. I think we're finally back to normal even though we have no clue what just happened to all of us...lol.

Now that I got the bad stuff out of the way on to some baby stats!

~ Addison you are wearing three to six month clothing but would prefer to just wear your diaper. Your Father started this little habit and it's pretty common to get home form work to find you in your swing in only your diaper and your Dad in the recliner in his underwear. Like Father like daughter I guess! :)

~ You are still in size one diapers though Aunt Nikki suggested stepping up to size two since she said you had a butt cheek hanging out of your diaper at the doctors on Friday. It was because we couldn't get it back on your properly since you were not happy but I am going to try one tonight and see how we do.

~ You sleep through the night, well almost through the night. Our typical bedtime is 10 and you usually wake up around 5 or so for a bottle. More often than not you go right back to sleep. As hard as I try to fight the urge you usually sleep nestled in my arms. It's not because you have to because you can truly sleep wherever we put you, it's because I find such comfort in holding you in my arms so that I can smell the lavender scent of your baby shampoo. I know I need to break myself of this habit but it's soooo hard!

~ You like getting a bath. You don't love it, you don't hate it. As long as we have the water warm enough and don't splash any water up on your face you are just fine. When Daddy puts you in your baby tub you kick your legs around like you're trying to swim and he gets the biggest kick out of it. I usually use your bath sponge and you just lay there like you have nothing better to do giving me the occasional smile. You love getting your hair washed and have since your first shampoo shortly after your birth. I love it to so I completely understand!

~ We have slowly started you on solid foods and I think we are going to start giving them to you more frequently since the bottle just doesn't seem to cut it anymore. Right now you are getting between 4 and 5 ounces of formula every two hours or so. If we feed you any more than that you throw it up and you are usually not a happy camper when we take the empty bottle away. I have gotten into the habit of telling you that the bottle is "all gone...it's all in your belly" just so you don't think I am just taking it away from you with milk still left. I think you are going to be just like your Daddy. He was stick thin growing up so I think you are going to have a fast metabolism, hence why we are going to start you on more solids. By the way, you do not care for carrots.

~ You love watching television. I think all of the colors and movements fascinate you. Daddy has been turning cartoons on for you...or maybe it's for him, I am not really sure at this point in the game...lol. We discovered a few weekends ago that you enjoy sitting in your Bumbo chair watching Nascar. Your papaw is going to be so proud!

~ You are fascinated by the dogs. Especially Bandit and Toby. Bandit likes coming over and just staring at you like it's a throw down and you just stare right back. I can only imagine what you two are really thinking.

Bandit- "I'm not sure who you think you are kid but you and this swing need to get outta here. Before you showed up I was Mom's little man with the sad brown eyes that could melt her heart...now all I hear is blue eyes this and blues eyes that. And another thing...this game you play each night, yeah you know the one, the one where you just so happen to start crying for a bottle right when Mom is getting ready to feed me and the other boys is for the birds. Knock it off or you'll lose another bottle when Mom and Dad aren't looking! Yeah that's right...it was me and not Lennon...he was just my fallback, stupid kid doesn't know what hit him."

Addison- "What is that hairy thing that keeps coming over and standing at the foot of my swing like he's got something he needs to say to me?? And the breath, man do something about that breath, you're going to stunt my growth with that stuff. And while we're laying everything out, quit scaring the crap out of me every evening when you oh so conveniently wake up and shake your head back and forth. Your jewels on that man necklace you wear rattle together and make me wet myself and it makes my Mommy pissy!"

~ You are talking so much right now...of course we need someone to try to translate but it's adorable none the less.

~ You love getting your diaper changed. I think you know how rank your diapers can be and you take great pride in making your parents suffer through diaper changes. You laugh and coo and just carry on, all while Mom and Dad are trying not to throw up. Yesterdays diaper change after the bout of constipation required Mom having to help you get rid of a little something. What a mother will do for her child! Dad had his nose plugged, a wash cloth over my nose, and we're both tearing up because of the smell and you just laid there smiling away at our expense. And Addison, you know it's a bad diaper when Mr. Leaky Winky Licker himself, a.k.a. Lennon has to leave the room.

~ You are most comfortable laying on your side and with your face plastered into something. I lay you along my pillows when I get up in the morning only to come back to find you turned on your side grabbing onto the nearest pillow with your head buried deep within it. Now you turn on your side in your swing and grab hold of the lambs ear which is the pillow. You fall asleep in this awkward sideways position holding on to his ear for dear life with your face smashed into the pillow. You crack me up child!

I'm sure I missed a few things but I will come back and add them if need be. The one thing I do know is that you are so incredibly special. Your Daddy says I am being selfish because I don't let anyone take you from me whether for a few hours or overnight. I don't really care what everyone thinks. I waited two very long years to hold you in my arms and I miss so much of your life during the week because I work as it is. I treasure every moment I get with you on the weekends and right now while we experience so many firsts as a new little family, there is no need for you to be away from us right now. I truly cannot get enough of you and I find myself just taking you in my arms and laying you gently in my bed so that we can just lay there staring at each other and having our girl talk. I keep telling your Daddy that now is the time to be selfish with you because in just a few shorts months you will be more independent and won't need us to just sit and cuddle with you. You will be on your way crawling back and forth and round and round and will have not interest with being contained in our arms.

I love you little girl, more than I ever knew possible.

Mommy

Banana Cheesecake Dessert

This recipe comes compliments of my July/August 2003 issue of Taste of Homes Quick Cooking magazine. I love these magazines and really need to renew my subscription. Most of the food they show us are the foods I grew up with, down home country favorites like Grandma used to make.

This dessert was really good and for the most part very easy to make. My only complaint was the crust...for whatever reason it stuck to the dish I made it in and I literally had to scrape it out to eat it. Not sure what I could have done to prevent it, suggestions are welcome!

Banana Cheesecake Dessert~
Source: Taste of Home/Jessica Simerly

Ingredients:
2 packages strawberry no-bake cheesecake mix
3/4 cup butter or margarine melted...I used butter
1/4 cup sugar
3 cups cold milk1 can (8oz) crushed pineapple, well drained
3 medium bananas, sliced
1/2 cup chocolate ice cream topping, warmed, divided...I used hot fudge
1/2 cup caramel ice cream topping, divided
1 carton (8oz) whipped topping, thawed
1/3 cup chopped pecans, I omitted
maraschino cherries with stems

Directions:
1.) Set aside filling and strawberry topping packets from cheesecake mixes. Place the contents of the crust mix packets in a large bowl; add butter and sugar. Press into a ungreased 13x9 dish.

2.) In a large mixing bowl, combine the milk and contents of filling packets. Beat on low speed until blended. Beat on high for 3 minutes or until slightly thickened. Spread over the crust. Refrigerate for one hour.

3.) Spread contents of strawberry topping packets over cheesecake. Top with pineapple and bananas. Drizzle with 1/4 of chocolate topping and 1/4 caramel topping. Spread with whipped topping.

4.) Refrigerate for 2 hours or until set. Before serving drizzle with remaining chocolate and caramel toppings. Top with pecans and cherries.

Yield: 16-20 servings

Chipotle Bacon Cheeseburgers

Not a lot of time for chit chat so this will be short and sweet as being a full time employee and a full time Mom is a lot of hard work. Throw in this terrible Ohio weather we are dealing with it and it makes for a very tired Katie!!

Anyway, I called home today to see if Daniel wanted anything in particular for dinner since I was stopping by the store after work. Surprise, surprise he said hamburgers, how typical...lol. I threw these together so I could blog about them and use up the extra chipotle peppers I had floating in the pantry.

I thought these were excellent although Daniel said five chipotle peppers may be to much. I think five was just enough and am thinking maybe I hadn't mixed the meat together as well as I could have and maybe he just got a really big bite of the stuff. I ate it without breaking a sweat which means they weren't to spicy for me. I do not do spicy so trust me on this one.
Chipotle Bacon Cheeseburgers
Source: Your's truly Katie! :)

Ingredients:
2 lbs. ground beef...I used an 80/20 mix
5 chipotle peppers in adobe sauce
2 tbsp. dried onions
1 tbsp. garlic powder
6 slices of cooked bacon
1 md. onion, cut in half and then thinly sliced
6 hamburger buns
Hellmans Mayo
6 slices of provolone cheese

Directions:

1.) In a medium bowl mix together meat, finely chopped chipotle peppers, garlic powder, and dried onions. Form into six hamburger patties.

2.) Over medium heat cook until you reach desired doneness. In a separate skillet saute onion until translucent.

3.) Top each burger with a slice of cheese and allow it to melt while still in pan.

4.) Cook bacon in microwave until done.

5.) To assemble burger apply a medium layer of mayo on bottom hamburger bun, top with hamburger, onion, and then one slice of bacon broken in half.

Hope you enjoy! On a side note...is doneness even a word or did I seriously just make that up and what in the world is going on with this post and it's fonts??