A Day in Our Life: 2012

In Memory of Sam

Safe in the Arms of Jesus - a sketch by Alice

I feel that I have a secret. Many people actually know it, but no one talks about it. Some people ask about it and I'm grateful for them because I need to talk about it...I need to remember the baby we lost.

We found out over Thanksgiving, on my birthday to be precise. I was almost 10 weeks along when we visited the ER in Sioux City on a Saturday and were told by a stranger that my body was ending the pregnancy and it felt the world came crashing down around me. We had just spent Thanksgiving day revealing the pregnancy to Jerod's family, I was showing and had been for about a month, all of my coworkers knew- what was I supposed to tell them?

If you have ever been pregnant you know that it doesn't matter how far along you are, as soon as you find out, you start dreaming and making plans and imagining how life will change and who your child will grow to be. You plan an entire lifetime in the matter of a few weeks, and when you find out you're miscarrying you feel as though a rug has just been ripped out from under your feet. Sure we never got to hold our baby or see his face, but we loved him from the very moment we knew he existed, and then he died and we lost a child.

In the beginning we tried to focus on all of the "positives". We focused on the fact that it happened early on in the pregnancy, and that we were able to be with family when we found out. We focused on it being just 'one of those things' that you have no control over. But the reality of the situation is, no matter how you spin it and try to focus on the so-called up-side of things- it still hurts. And, besides losing your baby, the worst part is that we're made to feel like it is so wrong to talk about it. Why do we try to downplay such a tragic event that happens to SO many?

Tori Amos has had three miscarriages, did you know that? I didn't. She did an interview and put it so well: "It's like a thief in the night. You go in to this emergency room an ecosystem, and you leave barren."

I know that someday we'll see Sam again, that's what we named the baby by the way. I believe he or she will be in their baby form to greet us when we leave this Earth. I just wish that more people discussed this subject so that people who fall victim to it don't feel so alone. I would never wish this on my worst enemy. I don't want anyone to be confused either, I am so happy for all our friends who are having successful pregnancies, I pray for every one of them to continue with no problems and can't wait to see their families grow. We will continue our own prayers and try to look forward to the future, I just want to be sure I don't forget about Sam along the way.

Almost 18 month photos

So she is actually only about 17 and a half months old, but what with our two snow days and being stuck inside with awesome natural light because of said snow, I decided to take advantage of a rambunctious little lady and try my hand at some cute pics!

Let me tell you- this one is getting more and more difficult to photograph because she is SO quick and mobile! I had to do some serious tickling, toy staging, and finally just following her wherever she wanted to go in order to get the shots I was looking for, but I feel it was a success.

The Session

At one point I figured this was the best I was going to get of a head on shot- she is mastering the fake smile even at her young age.

That would be the plastic kiwi she received with the rest of her basket of fruit for Christmas which she refused to put down, ugh!

This was the next point where I felt this was the best shot I would get of her....I think this was photo number 96.

This was my way of getting a true smile from her, by tickling. see the finger in the middle of her chest?

The Results- 176 photos and 3 hours of editing later

The tickling worked- look at those dimples!

This picture (minus the touch ups and vignetting) was the very last photo I got of her while she was scurrying all over the couch- whew!

I figure out how to black and white the rest of the photo and then enhance the brightness of her eyes so you can really see the blue. There's that dang kiwi again, but this is probably my favorite random shot just because of those eyes :)

That same last photo, just with some color enhancement.

That camera Jerod bought me just continues to pay itself off with all the savings on professional photography. It might take me 3 or 4 sessions to get just the right photo, but since we can do it on our own time it's not too big of a deal. Plus, it's amazing how photo editing software can turn a great picture into an amazing photograph!

Knocking on the potty training door

We bought a potty chair a while ago and Cailyn loved it, and by that I mean she loved pulling it apart and strewing the pieces around the house. Then, sorry if this is too much info, we sat her on it a couple times when she gave us the "I'm pooping" face and subsequently decided to become terrified of using the potty chair.

Potty chair seats obviously make gorgeous hats!

I didn't want to push it because I was afraid she would totally refuse to train, and now, she's showing some interest in it again.

I'll be saving this for use in about 16 years- how great is it with the crazy hair, too?!

She still has yet to actually potty in it or the toilet (it has a removable seat to set on the big potty), but I'm wondering when other people's babes started potty training and how you started them out. How do you know they're ready? Do you just set them on it every hour or two? Do you look for a tell? We're not pushing it, I'm just curious how to get her off and running- or rather, sitting and peeing!

Megan's Wedding (Reception)

Way back in October, Megan, one of my very dear friends from high school, got married to her man, Kris. The nuptials and reception were back in Sioux City, so we had a built in baby-sitter- SCORE! Anyway, we didn't attend the ceremony since it was during nap time, but we made it to the reception and it was so beautiful, very romantic and dramatic- just like Megan. I also got to see my other very dear friend from high school, Nicole and her high school sweetheart Casey. I can't tell you how great it was to reconnect with these two wonderful women. It's funny sometimes how so much time can elapse since you've seen a person, but you sort of pick up right where you left off.

We had a great time, and Jerod really enjoyed Casey's company- he's a pretty whacky guy, but also very genuine (which is what I love about my pal's hubby). Congratulations Megan and Kris, we wish you all the happiness in the world...which I found out is apparently supposed to end tomorrow, so enjoy it while it lasts!

Meet Casey and Nicole, they met at a block party in the cul-de-sac where their parents live and I like to say they've been together ever since. Don't they look like they're just infatuated with one another?

The happy new couple, Megan and Kris Albertson. Casey and Nicole insisted on 'photo bombing' them. I'm apparently an old geezer and had no idea what this meant. So, they showed me...you can see Casey, but where is Nicole??

Peek-a-boo!

Remember how lovey you were on your wedding day? Yeah, haha, me either.

See what I mean by whacky?! Jerod retrieved that penant for Casey from a wedding reception that was going on next door!

This was the best he would do for me, and I love it anyway.

The MOST wonderful time of the year!

So I'm not going to sugar coat it....I LOVE CHRISTMAS! Which balances out the fact that Jerod really can't stand the Christmas season, or any holiday season for that matter. I don't think it's because of the holiday itself, more so the traveling and spending of money- so I just ignore his grumblings and do my thang.

This year I was in a particularly crafty mood and added to my Christmas home decor while also re-purposing some scrap wood and an old kitchen sign (at least for two of the projects). The other two were a mix of bargains and some creativity.

We had some wood leftover from cutting drawer fronts in the kitchen and I needed a bright and cheery piece to add to our tiny powder room in the back of the house. Something that blended with the colors we already had in there. Plus, I got to use one of my favorite quotes from Buddy the Elf!

I must have seen a bajillion of these types of wreaths on Pinterest over the last couple of months. It was SO easy to make, and pretty inexpensive since I was able to get a straw wreath and the deco mesh ribbon each for 5 bucks (it took the entire giant roll of deco mesh). I already had floral wire on hand for pinning and I love it, though it looks weird here I think because the wall looks so minty instead of bamboo-ey like it's supposed to.

While I was stuck at home my mom and sisters were nice enough to nab me some more Christmas trees from the fabric store and at 50% off- which is even better! I spent $5 on a small roll of quilt batting and like $1.50 on a small string of white lights to hide in between the layers, and added a couple poinsettias and family photos as finishing touches. I love the way it glows like snow!

This was just an update with some floral picks from Hobby Lobby- I LOVE that place, for again, 50% off each pick. I purchased some cheapie battery operated lights that I wrapped around the wreath as well, but they were so cheap they died after maybe 2 hours....bummer.

This baby didn't cost me anything because I had everything on hand. This sign used to say something about the kitchen and what-not, but I had sanded the paper off a long time ago and never figured out what to do with it. Well, it's amazing what some paint, scrapbook paper, and Mod Podge will do. I even tried my hand at six pointed stars, you can get really creative with those!

I love crafting for my home, it helps me de-stress and we've had too much of that lately. Happy decorating!

Rebel Without a Cause

So the other night we were watching an ACDC concert on television- and Cailyn. Was. Loving it! I thought it was pretty cute at first until I realized we may have a tiny rebel on our hands....I guess we'll wait and see on that one- but she sure loves Daddy's rock and roll music :) Well, Jerod was able to catch a little video of her, she's even learning to keep a beat. I think this girl will be a natural with music- just what Jerod wants to hear!

Carpeting the Stairs

We have had the one half of our basement semi-finished since about the time Cailyn was born or thereabouts, but the other half we have been waiting on until we can get the basement bathroom plumbing roughed in. But we have had a small project that we wanted to work on and FINALLY got around to it. And of course, as with all projects, it seemed simpler than it actually was, but it got done and that's all that matters :)

We just purchased some carpet from Menards that has the pad already installed. So much easier than having to instill pad AND carpet, whew!

This handy dandy carpet installation kit was very helpful in getting this stuff installed. I ended up adding a pair of nice seamstress scissors by the end because the carpet blade was giving me messy cuts and edges.

Here's the unfinished ugly brown steps with Kanga tape on them, ready for the carpet to go down.

Don't they look SO much more cushy and inviting?! Love it!

Can it be 16 months already?!

Well, even if we can't believe it, it's true. It's been a whole 16 months since we were graced with the presence of our precious baby girl- who, by the way, is turning out to be not such a baby anymore (tear, sniff, sniff). She is figuring things out so quickly and lately has begun to talk like a fiend. We can't understand her really, but still- she babbles on like she's having a whole conversation. Here's some photos of our gem!

Such a great helper- she loves to swiffer, especially right through a pile of dirt Mommy has just swept together....

One day after school she was all about my new boots- we could only zip them halfway because they are so tall and she's, well, so small in comparison

Little gal is becoming quite a skilled builder and very much so enjoys her mega blocks, especially putting them all away in the bag and then dumping them right back out all over the floor

Putting on random clothes is also a new interest. She's been known to be seen wearing dirty shirts, mom or dad's socks, Aunt Amanda's clothes she leaves upstairs, and even dad's boxer briefs- right around her head!

My younger siblings (who am I kidding, they're all younger), my MUCH younger siblings found this hat somewhere and thought Cailyn would enjoy it- they were so right


Straight up ornery- and yes those would be a pair of tights inside out being worn as a hat.

Happy week before Thanksgiving- diet now so you can pig out in 9 days :)

End of the October Hiatus!

So I've clearly neglected this blog for far too long. So sorry, I left my camera at my parents' house in Sioux City when we went back for my high school pal's wedding, and my camera phone just couldn't catch our quick kiddo!

I just wanted to quick post her Halloween costume- I got it for about 25 cents at a garage sale in Kansas City this past spring. The zipper is broken on it, but the snaps held just fine and I was in love with a costume that didn't cost me an arm and a leg since, let's be real, she'll only wear it once. In case you can't tell she's a ladybug. She went trick or treating with Daddy to four houses, all belonging to good friends of ours, and I was told she despised the driving between houses because of the in and out of the car seat. She made out well for only hitting four homes though, I think she got about as much candy as I bought to hand out (which wasn't too much- we literally had about 8 trick or treaters total). Anyway, we'll be posting more often now that I have my trusty camera back, Happy late Halloween!


Busted! This poor kid inherited her mother's sweet tooth...

15 months old!

Our baby turns 15 months old today- I hate that this is going by so fast.

At this point she is down to one bottle a day during the week, and two a day on weekends (because Mom's a softie and likes the cuddling before nap and bedtime). She has 11 teeth, her four uppers and lowers right in front, two molars on each side on the top, and one molar on the left side on the bottom- and by the way, she was a Mommy Biter when those were coming in- OUCH! Her favorite things to do are go to the park, stand too close to the TV, read books in the rocking chair (usually she likes to do that by herself and will crawl down if you pull her in yourself), put jumbo legos in mom and dad's mouths and laugh when we launch them across the room, and take any and everything out of all the drawers in the house whether it is books, floss, Dad's shaver, spoons, forks, sippy cups, Mom's underwear, or every comb and brush in the bathroom. She is still a very good eater, but dinner is spoiled easily if she has a snack when she comes home from the sitter's. She knows sign language for "more", "all done", and "please"- and makes them very flashy when she wants more NOW! Her words consist of: Dada, Mama, Ba, and nana (banana).

Enjoy some photos of our big girl!

Peek a Boo!

This mom is hoping that whatever those splatter marks are, they're on the outside of the bubble window!

My loves

Look at that tush and those thunder thighs!

So determined and independent

What can you even say about this? She's just adorable!

Her new hiding spot

Do you see that she actually has hair now?!

Hmmm....I wonder where she got this pose from- definitely not mom or dad

Happy 15 months Cailyn!

Little Monkey

I won't name names, but somebody in our house has learned how to climb up onto the dining room chairs. No, it's not me or Jerod (I know, hard to believe we have relearned that skill, it's amazing how you have a baby and all of a sudden eating at the table is the new normal.) Now, for most people, this probably isn't such a big deal- but before we had a child we loved the idea of a counter height table. That means that our chairs also had to be a little taller than normal, creating a shaky situation, literally and figuratively. Little gal tried to rock one of the chairs after climbing onto it and about tipped the whole thing right over! Needless to say, she is highly discouraged from climbing in or on the table and chairs, but sometimes she is so darn quick and we don't even notice until she's already up there!

So I took point from our friend, Jamie, and have been keeping the chairs pushed in to the table, which creates this situation:

Cue frustrated whining

This went on for a good five minutes

She was so mad as all get out that she couldn't stand up, but she just kept trying until we pulled her down. Just so everyone knows, I wasn't just snapping pictures whilst she could possibly fall and injure herself- Jerod was standing next to the chair, ready to be Super Daddy if need be.

Monthly Menu: Finding the Recipes and Forming the Menu

So a while back I wrote a completely scatter-brained post about how I thought I was SO smart to create a menu board. It was going to save me SO MUCH MONEY on groceries. I wish I could say it had- but the truth about saving money on groceries is you have to combine several strategies to do it. Mine are:

Coupons
Ad browsing
Sam's club
Monthly meal planning

Now, I can't say that monthly planning will be for everyone, it takes some serious thought. I mean, who wants to get stuck eating some version of chicken and rice 4 days in a week?? It also takes some research- and by research, I mean scavenging for recipes- I do mine mostly with Pinterest and the bajillion cookbooks I have on hand already. It has really helped me feel less stressed about "What am I going to make for dinner tonight?!", all I have to do is look at the menu board, and I'm good to go.

Some people look for deals in the grocery stores and base their recipes off of those- I choose recipes I know my family will like or I think they will like, and then I scope out ads to fit what I need. I have made it a rule that there is at least one crockpot recipe per week and I save fancy or extensive recipes for Sundays- the idea of Sunday supper is nostalgic to me and I have more time to spend on a meal that day. I start searching for recipes a couple weeks before the next month begins- this gives me plenty of time to pick out meals and, ideally, keeps me from stressing about filling in days (though it usually happens anyway). Also, I never pick out weekday recipes that I think will take me longer than 15-30 minutes to get into the oven or get cooking on on the stove, and I make sure to include leftover days. We usually don't need many of these because we take our leftovers for lunch at school, but make sure to include this- you don't have to cook every night! Sheesh!

My printable menu is just a template I downloaded on Microsoft Word. As I'm adding recipes I think about things like:

Do the ingredients have to be fresh or can they be frozen/canned?
Do I have another recipe similar to this in the same week?
How long will this take me to prep and cook?
Do I need a side with this?

You get the picture. Meals that need fresh ingredients that can't be frozen go toward the beginning of the month, then meals whose ingredients can be prepped and frozen go next, then those that can use canned or store bought frozen ingredients. I write in the recipe and where I can find it again, otherwise I would never remember. For me, this is as simple as: Pinterest, Recipe Binder, or Reno Cookbook, etc. Meals that I know by heart or don't really have a recipe are just left blank underneath.

The next menu post will include couponing, ad browsing, and writing my grocery list.

Good Food, Good Meat...

...Good God, Let's eat! My Dad used to say that when we were growing up sometimes, instead of saying Grace before dinner. It has stuck with me :)

I wanted to share a couple dinners we've had lately, that are pretty all around pleasing, at least I'd like to think so since I made them.

Chicken Spinach Alfredo Pizza

I like to make a homemade pizza crust, but this pizza would be a SUPER quick fix if you got pre-cooked crusts (usually in the pasta aisle) or the refrigerated crust you get in a tube by the refrigerated biscuits. I used:

1 jar Light Parmesan Alfredo Sauce

1 box chopped frozen spinach

1 cup chopped or shredded chicken (leftover rotisserie chicken would be perfect)

1 8 oz. bag shredded Mozzarella or Pizza cheese

1/2 c. shredded Parmesan cheese (optional- it makes it seem a little more gourmet, to me)

3-4 slices of bacon, chopped and cooked crisp

1. Prepare your pizza crust if it's not cooked already, it usually needs to cook a bit before adding toppings
2. Microwave unopened box of spinach in a glass bowl for 5 minutes; remove from packaging into a dish towel; wrap with towel and twist ends to wring water out of spinach; combine spinach and alfredo sauce
3. Spread sauce mixture on pizza crust, top with cheeses, then chicken and bacon; bake until desired doneness!

Pork Lo Mein

Get together:

Your favorite stir-fry veggies (we like sliced bell peppers, sliced onion, shredded carrots, sugar snap peas, and crushed garlic, or sometimes I even just use a bag of frozen stir-fry veggies)
1 lb. Pork loin, steak, chops, or you could do chicken breast, too- this needs to be cut into thin strips
Lo Mein noodles or spaghetti if you can't find lo mein (I have gotten mine from HyVee, they were called Wu-Mu noodles there, and I also have gotten them from an Asian food store and they were called Shang Dong noodles, I think....)
Canola oil
1/4 to 1/2 c. Soy Sauce

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook noodles- lo mein noodles only take 3-5 minutes to cook, spaghetti would, of course, take a little longer; drain in collander, set aside.
2. Heat a couple tablespoons of oil in a large skillet or wok and stir-fry meat until cook through and no longer pink; remove from pan and reserve
3. Add another couple tablespoons of oil in skillet or wok and stir-fry veggies until desired doneness (we like ours a little softer so the baby gal can eat them with us, so I cook them a wee bit more); add meat and noodles and soy sauce. Start with 1/4 cup and add more to taste- we LOVE us some lo mein with our soy sauce ;)
4. Enjoy!

And just in case you mostly read to catch peeks at our little rascal- check down below, she cracks me up!