Stuffed Cabbage

I have always wanted to try Stuffed Cabbage for dinner. I love cabbage (coleslaw especially!), and this recipe looked pretty good. Being a new mom with a 6 month old means I like the quicker recipes now... the ones where I can get dinner prepped and finished within an hour or less. While this recipe is definitely a bit time consuming, the end result is worth the work and wait! Layla decided to have a screaming tantrum (probably that pesky tooth that just broke through her gum!) while I was getting this made, so I did skip a couple things. All in all, it came out very scrumptious, and I will be making them again. I think there are so many ways you could make this. It's pretty versatile. It reminded me of stuffed peppers, minus the extra steps. I may add some sort of small veggie to the filling next time. We sprinkled Parmesan cheese over the top as we were plating. Kyle and I use Parmesan cheese on just about everything. ;-)

Try this out some night when you have a little extra time. It does take 2 hours to bake, so you could even prepare this ahead, refrigerate, then stick it in the oven the next day.

Photo and recipe not mine.

Baby Happenings

I have not been good at all with blogging. I am not going to blame it on life, because it will always be busy! I just actually haven't felt up to doing much, let alone blogging. Hah. ;)

I figured I would write a little about my growing daughter. I remember last year fondly, around this time of year, being so excited to have a baby growing in my belly. I couldn't feel her move yet, but I knew she was there and that alone was exciting! Now I have this little girl in my home who never ceases to amaze me! I think of the verse about being "fearfully and wonderfully made". God made us all so unique, and one of my favorite parts about being a mother is seeing every little detail that he made in my child. Her personality, her facial expressions, her features (love those eyes and eyelashes!), her sin nature, her dependence on me, etc.

Layla will be 6 months next week. I am so excited we are almost to the 1/2 year mark! We started solids a few weeks ago, and it has gone pretty well so far. Some days we skip solids all together, but she is getting familiar with different tastes and textures. Her menus have consisted of avocado, sweet potatoes, pears and bananas. We are going to try out carrots soon!

Her hand coordination has improved so much over the last month. She has purpose when she reaches for things, and a lot more control over what she does with those hands. Everything that she can grab usually goes to her mouth. Haha. She has her first tooth and the other one is on the way! She is not a happy teether, but she is definitely not on the bad end of it either. Just mostly fussy and clingy.

We tried sitting her up on the floor herself this week, and she is able to stay up for the most part with a nursing pillow behind her. She loves the jumpy seat at my parent's house, and because of that she will jump any time you stand her up.

Life with a baby is lots of fun... there can be some really bad days too, but for the most part it is pretty great. We are looking forward to summer with more time spent outside, and trips to the seaside.

My two loves. They are both so adorable!

Sleeping beauty. Wish she was always this peaceful! :P

Lost in the World of Motherhood

I took a look at my last post and realized it has been a month and a half since then. Whew, where does time go? I wish it would hide out in my pocket or something, so I could save it for when I really needed it. Which is like, all the time! :)

I'll admit it, I have been lost away in this place called Motherhood. And to be honest, I do love it. I love being a mommy. The new things that come along with a growing baby can be quite challenging at times, but then you just get past the bump in the road and keep going until the next one comes up.

My little girl is just amazing. I love her to pieces. She makes me smile every morning I go to get her from her crib. I know she can hear my footsteps when I walk into her room... then I take a peek at her and she realizes it's me, and out comes a big smile from her little mouth. Ahh, that is what makes it all worth it, friends! Layla is 5 months old. Can you believe that? Seems like not too long ago I was gigantically pregnant and on "couch-rest", and now I have a beautiful daughter who shares every moment of the day with me. I do enjoy having a little girl, and I know it will only get more and more fun as she gets older. We do everything together. Where I go, she goes. What I do, she does. I think she just might be the mini-me someday. The poor girl. ;)

So while I have been occupied with mommy things, we have also been on a new diet, which takes a little more thought and time each day. About a month ago, we decided to try the Paleo diet. No refined sugars, grains, dairy, gluten, etc. The nice thing about this diet is that you can tailor it to what your body responds best to. So while we may not be 100% Paleo in our eating, we follow the main principle. And that is to cut out a lot of refined, processed, boxed foods and eat more fresh, raw foods. I personally have noticed a huge difference in the way I feel. My skin is finally clearing up and healing (part of that is from using coconut oil on my face), I have lost weight, and I feel less lethargic during the day. Finding enough food to fill us up that isn't a grain, gluten, dairy or full of sugar was hard at first. But we are getting it down now. We bought RAW Meal Replacement powder to make shakes in the morning. That fills us up for quite a while and is extremely good for us. It's plant based and full of live enzymes. We do "cheat" a bit on the weekends, but I feel that is perfectly okay as long as it's not a binge fest. When I say cheat, I mean, we eat some gluten, grains and dairy... we don't eat desserts all weekend or stuff our face with chips. Hehe. Layla will also be practicing the Paleo diet with us until she is a bit older. I'm waiting to introduce grains to her, and am sticking with veggies and fruit. I plan to make all her baby food homemade.

Today is Saturday, and that means we are together as a family. I look forward to this day every week. Hope you all enjoy your weekend! Here's to hoping for some nice, spring weather. :)

Melt in Your Mouth Chicken

Okay, this recipe is all that. I'm talking - easy, few ingredients and soo delicious! My husband asks me to make this all the time now. Even the most picky eaters, and even those who hate mayo love this chicken. I just don't tell them what is in it! ;) What I especially love about this recipe is that you throw it together, stick it in the oven and leave it in there for a while. I usually pair it with brown rice (or my newest fave, brown rice medley from Trader Joes!) and let that steam while the chicken bakes. It all works out quite well and I don't have to put much effort into it. Any veggie side will do with this, though I usually like to add something green to a dish like this. So, green beans, broccoli, salad, peas, etc.

Here is the link to this fabulous dish. Make it tonight! I'm almost sure you will have all the ingredients on hand. :)



PS: I usually use boneless chicken thighs, because those are my favorite!

I'm Still Here...

Wow, has life been busy. I have also been way too tired to get on here and catch up. So, I guess I will have to update in a nutshell... but we'll see. I tend to be long winded sometimes. :)

Sickness finally hit Layla. I was kind of expecting it at some point, sadly. I try to be flexible and let people hold her and play with her... that means germs are obviously spreading. And I do take her everywhere with me when I shop and such, so it was kind of bound to happen eventually. She's still so little and hasn't had a chance to build her immune system, so she caught the cold that's been going around. At first it was a dry cough, then it developed into a wet cough and congestion. The congestion is what really made me nervous. She would cough and gag and choke on the mucous and I felt so bad! I took her to the doctor on Monday just to be on the safe side. We ended up seeing a different pediatrician since Dr. Maalouli wasn't in. She basically said that Layla sounded fine and was holding her own. She gave me some suggestions and warned me of some things that might happen... like that she might throw up a ton of mucous at some point. And the doctor was right. Layla screamed for ten minutes before she threw up a bunch of gunk. The poor girl. :( She was so tired from that that she clonked out not a minute later on my shoulder. She is finally getting over it, though she still has a rattly cough now and then. I think everything is just trying to make its way out.

The good thing about Layla's cold is that it will make her stronger. I hated seeing her struggling all week, but thankfully it didn't last too long and her immune system is that much stronger from it. Surprisingly, she slept the best those few bad days while she was sick. She actually slept through the night! Now we are back to our usual schedule of waking up 1-3 times during the early morning hours. Sigh. I am exhausted and ready for some solid sleep. O.o

Last Saturday, my mother-in-law and sister-in-law came to visit us for a few days. It was so nice to have them here for more than a day, and it was also helpful to have them around while Layla wasn't feeling well.

Kyle just sent out his application to the Maine State Police on Tuesday. Now we begin the waiting game, once again, and see what happens this year. I will be so thankful when he is hired, so we can get through a year without wondering if we will be moving or not.

Last Friday was our Celebration of Love Banquet at church. It was a nice evening. Needless to say, Kyle and I never got to celebrate Valentine's Day together, though he did buy me flowers and a card. :) There was just too much going on this year to do anything special.

Last Friday I also rearranged my living room and dining room... all alone, in a few hours, right before my company came. Haha. I don't know if it was hormones or just sick and tired of the set-up, I just wanted it totally redone. So I completely switched rooms. I am liking the new set-up and am still working on organizing. I feel so much better now that that is done! Silly me.

I am so glad it is Friday. I know I don't work out in the world, but when Friday comes I am so happy I get to see my husband for the next two days! He is working lots of overtime lately, and it seems like I hardly see him before he clonks out at night. Now let's see how much cleaning and organizing I can get done before the weekend sets in... ;)

Catching Up

It's starting to look like winter again today. The snow is falling, and I am fighting to keep myself from falling asleep! I have already gotten my grocery shopping done for the week, and now the house is in desperate need to be tidied after the weekend. I always find my house falls apart on the weekends...

Layla turns 3 months old today! She is celebrating by taking a nap after being lugged through Trader Joes and out into the cold. :) There are so many daily developments that I lose track. I am not sure how much she has gained over this past month, but we will find out soon at her 4 month appointment. She loves to smile now, and is even smiling at strangers or people that she doesn't know. When we prop her up on a pillow or lay her on our knees, she is always trying to pull herself forward to sit up. She is getting very strong! Those little arms and feet are usually going crazy and sometimes I think it surprises her. She has that very ungraceful arm flailing that usually tends to whack me in the face from time to time. Pretty soon here, we are going to have one energetic baby crawling around the house! She is a lot of fun to be with and has made us laugh often. Definitely seeing more attitude as she learns more... that is usually scolded by a "no, no, no"! She knows how to cry/scream for attention until she is picked up. I'm hoping that we can get over that, because she is such a good girl otherwise.

Layla's pediatrician recommended I put her on Vitamin D drops because of the huge lack we have in this part of the world. Actually, everyone should be taking it, but we don't or we forget. I had forgotten to pick some D drops up for her in my trips to the store, so I stopped by Vitamin Shoppe on Saturday (after our trip to Starbucks!) to see what they had. The Enfamil brand is full of junk, so I wanted to see if they had other options. I did find some, but then I noticed they had DHA for babies. I was checking it out and saw that is contained Vitamin D in it as well and was the same price as the regular D drops! It is made from 100% wild Arctic cod and does not contain any "junk" or flavoring. I've heard cod liver oil is so good for you, so I am hoping this helps with her development and health.

She doesn't seem too happy right now, so I guess I will be off. I have been working on projects and recipes lately, but haven't had a chance to blog them. Hopefully I will catch up soon!

Enjoy the snow! :)

Sour Cream Coffee Cake

I am normally not a breakfast cook. There aren't many mornings in a year when I get up to make a full breakfast. My idea of breakfast is yogurt and a granola bar or instant oatmeal or fruit... very occasionally scrambled eggs and toast! If you are having guests overnight (which was the case for me and my sister last weekend) and don't have time to get a huge meal together, this is a great option for breakfast. Add some coffee and cereal or fruit and you have a delightful (not to mention light) breakfast!

My mother has a recipe for sour cream coffee cake somewhere, I believe. I'm not sure if this is exactly like it, but it turned out delicious. Very moist, and not too sweet. It makes a 9x13 pan, so you can either serve it right away or freeze some. I should have stuck some in my freezer, but I wasn't too smart at the time. ;)

I got the recipe from Ali at gimme some oven and I love all her recipes. I follow her on Pinterest and quite frequently see something that looks great. I followed the recipe exactly. Five stars for this! Next time I may try to make a more crumbly topping just for fun.

Cleaning Regimen

I think it is good to make goals. Every year I make "goals" rather than resolutions to see how far I can get. A resolution can be so easily forgotten, and most likely never followed through. I see my goals as something to strive towards... even if I don't fully reach them, at least I have made it a point to get there!

One of my biggest battles is keeping my house clean. Ask me to clean your house and I will take that any day! But my own? It is so easy to get behind on things. Especially the towers of pots, pans, plates, bottles... and piles of laundry that seem to accumulate from nowhere. Not to mention the clutter here and there. That has become a real issue since we made our storage room a nursery. So where to put all this stuff?! In reality, I don't enjoy the cleaning part of homemaking. I enjoy the cooking and baking and crafting and so forth. Actually I take that back. I do enjoy cleaning, but I don't like getting behind on everything! Those days where it takes all day (if not more!) to get my house clean is just not fun at all.

So, I have made it a goal of mine to try (attempt) to get better at keeping my house clean. I am not going to overwhelm myself with a huge list of things to do each day. And I know that I will never have a spotless house. That is just not me. I love to live in my home and do lots of different projects and enjoy my time with my baby and husband. They are more important than a spotless home. But keeping things tidy is important! Below is my new "goal" that I hope to strive for. I may not follow it perfectly every day. In fact, I know I won't! Things will come up, I'm sure. But I am going to at least try to keep a better home and follow this simple schedule.

Weekly Cleaning Regimen

Monday: 

Floors - vacuum/sweep, mop every other week

Tuesday: 

Appliances - wipe down stove, microwave, fridge, heater, any other kitchen appliances that need cleaning

Wednesday:

 Bathroom - wipe down toilet and sink, wash tub every other week (I do this with a cleaner and dish wand while I am in the shower)

Thursday: 

De-clutter - piles of papers, stuff thrown in a corner (lol), etc.

Friday: 

Dust - Everything from surfaces to window sills 

Saturday: 

OFF - I chose this as a day to have fun and take a break from the house

Sunday: 

Tidy rooms - just a quick cleaning of all rooms before we go to bed

Every Day:

1 load of laundry

1 load of diapers (if needed)

1 load of dishes in dishwasher

Make bed

Quick tidy of rooms

2 Months Old

My little girl officially turned 2 months on the 3rd. It's hard to believe, yet it seems like she has just always been with us! I'm sure you moms know the feeling...

Her 2 month check-up was last Thursday - the day where the icky road conditions began. Thankfully we made it to the office safely, and thankfully we were scheduled for a morning appointment! Our peanut is still a peanut at 9lb. 11oz. and 22 inches long. Her doctor was happy with the development though and was not worried one bit about her weight. One thing for slight concern was her head... because she favors her right side, her head has become a little misshaped. I have noticed ever since she was born that she loves to turn her head to her right side. She sleeps like that most of the time. Had I know, I would have tried to prevent it from becoming a habit. Buuut, I didn't, so now she has a slight bulge on one side of her head. Like I said, not anything for great concern, because it can be helped with massaging her neck and trying to get her to stretch it to the other side too. Since she is only two months old, her head has much more growing to do before it is anything permanent.

2 months 

A few days old.

Layla is now smiling and talking away to people, things on the walls, and the ceiling. It is so fun to watch her! We have started cloth diapering. The diapering part is easy... the cleaning part, not so much. I know it will be once we have it figured out, but I still am not getting clean diapers until they are washed umpteen-million times. It is actually not the diapers themselves as much as the cloth liners that go in them. I'm still experimenting... each diaper brand is different, and I know certain cleaning methods work for certain diapers.

She is still sleeping pretty well during the night. Of course we have our nights (like last night!) where she wakes up every few hours. But for the most part, she is sleeping anywhere from 4-7 hours at a time. Four being the very least, and seven is the most ever. Most nights, she is able to fall asleep on her own after being fed, changed, and bundled up. That is a new thing for her, since before I was having to hold her until she fell into a deep sleep.

We are looking forward to the many new developments in the next month or two! It is exciting when we reach new milestones. Like the smiling... it made Kyle and me so overjoyed to see our daughter smiling and cooing at us. :) Having a baby around is good for the soul!

Tomorrow is the last day of this year and I am thinking to myself, how did time seem to fly by quicker this year than the year before? Maybe it just comes with age, but I really do look back at my year and wonder how it could go by so fast. All in one year I got pregnant and had a baby, and now she is just about two months old! Unbelievable...

Life certainly has changed a bit, but I would never trade it for anything. Our little girl is turning 2 months this Friday. Her next appointment with her doctor is on Thursday and I am very curious to see how much she has grown compared to her first week. She is still such a peanut, but definitely growing by the day! I have gotten a few smiles out of her, but she still is not smiling excessively like most babies do when they figure out how. She has started to really show when she is mad about something, and often will scream to get mama's attention! Yes, a little attitude I am seeing here. I know it is hard to believe, but she does know the word "NO". I have said it since the beginning when she starts to get all red and angry about something. She understands that mama is not approving of that and tones it down to a whimper. It is quite funny! Our babies can understand a whole lot more than we think they do! And tone of voice has a lot to do with it. The last few days, I have noticed a lot more squirming and kicking and flailing of arms. She also has been burying her head into me now before she settles down to sleep. It is amazing all these little things I start to notice that are different from the week before. Our newest favorite is the shower. She has joined mommy two different times for a shower and absolutely loves it! She keeps nice and warm up against me... the water must be a soothing sound to her. She doesn't make a fuss at all.

As for me, I haven't been feeling that great the past few weeks, and I think it has to do with hormones. I hear it takes quite a while for them to level out, and for some reason my body isn't responding well to it. I have gotten 3 migraines since having Layla, and they are the bad ones. The blotchy vision, numb hand, arm and face, headache... and it takes a whole day to recover. I am assuming it is hormones, but not sure. I skipped my follow-up visit with my midwife since things were just too busy right before Christmas. I see her in February though and may ask if I can get blood work done to check my levels. Part of all this may just be lack of sleep, as well. Who knows...

I can't wait to get my whole house pulled back together. Layla's nursery had become sort of a wrapping paper station/storage unit during our busiest time before Christmas. Now I just need to pack the Christmas stuff away and reorganize! The rest of the house could use a good cleaning too... sometimes I wonder if I will ever get caught up on everything. I think the answer may be no unless you are superwoman. There is always something to work on.

My next post will be about goals for the new year. I'm sure you can guess that a lot of them have to do with health and getting in shape again!

Men's Crochet Hat

I got my Christmas shopping done last week, just in time. There is no way that I ever will go shopping two days before Christmas. I have always been the type to have my gifts done early, though this year is a bit of an exception since I have been a bit occupied with things such as having a baby, maybe? Lol.

I needed a couple of small gifts, and I hate trying to figure out a bunch of cheap ones that are something someone might not use anyway... so I decided to crochet hats for the men in my life. I did so last year, but I have been told that they have been worn so much while working that they are getting kind of yucky. So why not make them some new ones? I already gave my dad his hat yesterday, as it was his birthday. Sorry, I didn't get a picture of that one. It was a foresty green color with two thin gray stripes. It came out way cool. That was made with Lion Brand Wool-Ease Forest Green Heather, with the stripes being Grey Heather. I love the texture of the wool-ease, and it is very soft. Not scratchy either!

Below are two different hats, but the same pattern. I took Bev's Basic Crocheted Hat and made my own spin with the ribbed look at the bottom. The grey one is the same yarn as the one I mentioned above - Wool-Ease, but the colors are just switched. The blue and red one was made with Caron Simply Soft Dark Country Blue and Caron Simply Soft Autumn Red. This hat came out quite different since the yarn is nothing alike. I like to think it looks a bit more edgy, while the grey hat tends to be more fitting for the "outdoorsy" man.

Of course I have to try them on... the grey looks good on a female too! You could just switch out the stripe for another color or keep it plain. 

I love the versatility of this pattern. You can do basically anything with it! It comes in lots of sizes too. The blue hat was the larger size, while the grey was the regular for a man or woman.

I'm on to the next project... I am beginning to wonder if I should start making money off this stuff on Etsy. Hmmm....??

Potato Soup

Everyone wants a warm, comforting meal during the winter months. This potato soup is just that. The hubster and I ate this up and enjoyed every last spoonful! It did require a little work... and it has quite a bit of milk and cream in it. So if you are looking for something low-fat, this is not the recipe you want! But if you want a super delicious, creamy soup for a cold, winter night this is it! I halved this recipe, as there are only two of us. We did have leftovers, but not a lot! Kyle made cheddar garlic biscuits with Bisquick and that was a really nice pair with the soup.

I did not use the bacon. That was a real bummer, but I was not going to buy a pound of bacon and be the only one to eat it since my husband will not eat anything pork related!

I have been craving this soup ever since I made it last week. Definitely will make again.

Family Time

Opening a gift with Daddy. 

Well our weekend did not go as planned, but we did make it to Maine and back! It was a very short trip, because of the snow that came in. We were too nervous to be driving in it with a baby, and Kyle, Kurt and Coralie all needed to be back to work for Monday (we all rode together). We arrived in Maine a little past midnight on Friday, stayed up until 2am, then woke up early for a "Saturday morning" to do Christmas gifts. During those five hours during the night, I woke up twice to feed Layla. I think the traveling and bed time threw her off quite a bit.

Kyle used to sleep in this... his dad made it. Now Layla can use it!

We decided to leave Saturday afternoon to try to beat the storm home. We stopped at my grandparent's house near Freeport to introduce them to Layla and have a gift time there. By the time we left their house it was 4pm. We did run into snow, and it was quite bad especially near the coastal areas. All of the weather sites were saying something different, so it was hard to know exactly what to do. I think the snow came in earlier than some were saying. Anyway, we made it home, praise the Lord. I was pretty nervous with all of the crazy drivers speeding past us with the snow building up on the highway. I don't understand why people have to be so "macho" and speed through the snow like they are invisible. We took it slow and easy and had no troubles.

Great Grammy and Grampy Shatney

Papa and Grammy Hansen

Layla did so well with the car rides. I was a little amazed. I figured she would sleep a good amount of time, but I never thought she would last through both the entire 3+ hours without a screaming fit. She did sleep most of the entire time we were on the road. Hence the reason for lack of sleep during the last couple nights. I do hope we get into a good routine soon!

I am spending today trying to recover. Haha. Really, though. I had another stiff neck on Sunday. I don't understand why I am getting them, but they are a real pain. This week should be pretty busy with the last preparations for Christmas. I still have people to buy for, and I hate shopping in crowds, so it should be interesting. I think I will plan to go in the morning sometime this week... maybe the crowds won't be so big.

Auntie Kiersten 

Well Layla is on the verge of a nap, so I think I will take this time to relax and do something fun.

Layla enjoying her new swing from Papa and Grammy Hansen. Checking out the fun toy... 

This and That...

Last week was a rough week for me. All in one day, I got a clogged milk duct and horrible stiff neck from snapping it when I sneezed. I was almost certain I was getting an infection from the clogged duct. I had a fever, was incredibly sluggish, and felt achy all over. Nursing was very painful. That very morning, after I sneezed and felt something snap in my neck, I went back to sleep and woke up not being able to move my neck at all. That was all a challenge with having a baby screaming to be fed! Layla was also having an off week with lots of fussiness. I'm thankful for Alyssa coming over to help me that day for a few hours. That was a time when I definitely needed some help!

This week I have felt a bit overwhelmed with all I have to get done, but today I am feeling a little more excitement towards my weekend. Every year we have an early "Christmas" with Kyle's parents, and it usually works out the best the second week into December. Thankfully, I had gotten a lot of online shopping knocked off on Black Friday. I was a little nervous, though, because my shipment from Kohls hadn't shown up by Tuesday... I just received it yesterday, so that was a relief!

On top of all of that, Layla had decided to stay awake for hours in the middle of the night on Monday and Tuesday night, so I was feeling a bit more deprived of the precious sleep. Last night, she went from 10pm to 1am. I was not satisfied with that stretch, so I stuck the pacifier in and she slept until 3:30am! So a good 5 1/2 hours, really. I should have let her cry herself back to sleep at 1, but I don't like Kyle waking up when he has to get up early to work. She just keeps growing and growing... I have had to put away some of the newborn sizes because she is just too long for them. And her tummy is filling out too. She fits into quite a few 0-3 month and some 3 month clothing! Though, some of it is still big, but the length fits pretty well.

I also got behind on dishes and laundry especially and was wondering how I would have the energy to pull all of this off! Somehow, God gave me the strength to get some much needed dishes and laundry done... and wrapping the gifts for this weekend. And all my Christmas cards sent out! That is an accomplishment. ;) Today I am feeling a little better, so I will be baking some goodies to take to my in-laws. We will be traveling up on Friday night with Kurt and Coralie (arrive late), and our Christmas morning will be on Saturday. That is the first out of many Christmases we will have, as usual. I am hoping Layla does well with the trip up (it's only 3hr. 15min.) and that she sleeps okay on our mini vacation.

Here are the goodies I plan to make today. It's not a whole lot, but I will be doing lots more closer to Christmas.

Who can resist a Homemade Peppermint Patties? I know I can't. The real thing is the best.
And I keep drooling over these babies..
. 
I know, right? Turtle Cookies!!!

I am off to feed the hungry munchkin!

Butternut Squash, Ricotta & Spinach Stuffed Shells

While browsing Pinterest recently, I came across this recipe and thought it looked like a nice twist to stuffed shells. I didn't really think my husband was going to give me the go-ahead to make these for one of our meals this week, but surprisingly he said they looked tasty! So, we put the ingredients on our grocery list and decided to try them. I have never cooked butternut squash before, so I had no clue how this would turn out. I didn't follow this recipe exactly, because I didn't want to have to buy a whole bunch of ingredients just for one recipe. 

The only tweaks that I made were not making a sage butter or using a fresh lemon, though for a more special occasion I would definitely do that! Instead, I added dried sage and lemon juice to the ricotta mixture. The recipe calls for 1 stick of butter to make the sage butter to drizzle over the top and that is way too much! So all I did was melt a half stick of butter and drizzle over the top before baking. That's not how the recipe calls to do it, but it's what I did and it still turned out great.

I really liked this recipe. It was very creamy... almost more rich with the squash. This is definitely a meal you want to eat right away, because as it cools the pasta gets hard to cut through. Leftovers were still good, but it wasn't one of those meals where it is better the day after. It also is a little time consuming, but making any stuffed shells tends to be that way anyway. This would be a special meal to make for guests.

I'm not sure what recipe will be next up for a post, but I do plan on doing some Christmas baking in the near future. So you can count on some recipe reviews for some good sweet treats. I have seen lots and lots of yummy things on Pinterest, and am going to have to narrow down my options for baking!

Family Christmas Photos

Here is a little peak of our Christmas photos. We have lots more to post, as well, but I still don't have those on my computer yet. We are so happy with how they turned out! Thank you, Alyssa Beth Photography! I have already ordered our Christmas photo cards and they are on their way in the mail. Enjoy. :)

Click here to view these pictures larger

Being a Mom

I have to say that even though having a baby to take care of is hard work, I love being a mom! Ever since I was very, very young I wanted to grow up, get married and have babies. That was always my goal, and God has blessed me with both of those things! I know things will get harder and there will be days that I will wonder how I will make it through (there already have been some!), but I am certain this is where I want to be. :)

Our little miss Layla is growing so fast. I am excited to see her progress over the last three weeks... we are now into our 4th week and I am amazed how quickly that time flew by. I thought for sure it would drag with all that is involved with taking care of a newborn. But pretty soon here, Layla will be 1 month old!

3 weeks old

I'm not sure if all babies are interactive and full of personality in their first month, but ever since the beginning, we have noticed these two things about her! Not to mention how strong she is. After about 1 1/2-2 weeks she started lifting her head on her own. She is very vocal too... especially in her sleep. It is cute, but hard to sleep at night sometimes when she makes so much noise grunting and squeaking. She definitely knows when mama is holding her, and responds to my voice. I love being the one to comfort her when she has a tummy-ache or just wants to be held. I broke down and started using a pacifier during those moments where I just can't be there to hold her. You know, those times where you are standing over the stove cooking dinner or have your hands in dish soap... or better yet, are in the bathroom trying to have some time to shower and pull yourself together. She normally doesn't need it too often, but it is so helpful for those times where you just need to do something to stop her crying. I put her in her seat and set it in the doorway while I take a shower. I think she likes the sound of the water, because she normally seems content and either sleeps or looks around at things.

Morning cozy time looking around at everything.

Thankfully, I was able to get 3 1/2-4 hours of sleep at a time last night. That has been much needed and I sooo look forward to more sleep soon! The baby likes to be awake and alert during the morning hours and then sleeps a lot during the afternoon. After dinner, she tends to wake up a bit. And during the night feedings she tends to be more awake too. It has been tough getting her nights and days switched up, but we are getting there!

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. I feel like this whole year has passed more quickly than usual. I am so thankful for many different things, but especially that God is the One Who is in control. I have thought that to myself lots and lots of times this year through various situations. I'm also thankful for my beautiful little family. God has certainly blessed us! We are going to my parent's for the Thanksgiving meal tomorrow, and I'm looking forward to a relaxing day of not having to do much. I've already made two pies today and will make the stuffing tomorrow morning. Those are my contribution to the meal! Here are the recipes for the pies, though I didn't follow the complete recipe for the chocolate cream pie. I decided just to make the chocolate custard (with Ghirardelli milk chocolate) and leave the topping off. Might I say, the chocolate custard to that pie is TO DIE FOR. Yes, there was a little bit left over for taste testing! ;) Gotta love homemade custard. Mmmm.

Pumpkin Pie
Chocolate Cream Pie with Toasted Marshmallow Topping

Enjoy your day of giving thanks and time spent with family and friends!

Simply Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas

This week I am back into the swing of cooking. Before I had the baby, I was not well at all, and definitely not feeling up to much time on my feet. So it has been a while since I have felt pulled together as far as food and meals are concerned. I love to have a great meal for my hardworking Hubby to come home to!

I have never made enchiladas before... I'm not even sure I have even had them more than once or twice! These looked pretty easy, and I liked the fact that they didn't call for a ton of ingredients. And, there is no cream of anything in these babies. Kyle and I loved them. It was a great change-up to our typical meals we often find ourselves repeating weekly. I find myself craving them now that they are all gone! 

These would make a great meal to prepare ahead and refrigerate/freeze, then bake... or a great meal to take to a friend in need. No, that is not a hint that I want you to make me another pan of these and bring them over! Hehe.

http://www.keyingredient.com/recipes/210497701/simply-sour-cream-chicken-enchiladas/

I'd give them 5 stars for being simple and delicious!

Enjoy,

My Growing Girl

Today Layla and I headed for our 4th visit to the doctor since she has been born! We have been seeing a pediatrician that we really like, and today Dr. Maalouli was thrilled to see that Layla has gained 5 ounces and grown 3/4" since Saturday!

When we were still in the hospital, they almost didn't let us go home because she had dropped a bunch of weight in a very short period of time. She was born 6lb. 7oz. and had dipped down to 5lb. 8oz. We kept having to go to the doctor's to make sure she was still not losing, and thankfully she is really taking off in growth! She is now 6lb. 3oz. Our doctor was very pleased with the progress and said she would see us in 6 weeks for her two month appointment. Yay, for no more doctor's visits until then!

Little peanut is now a very hungry peanut, eating every 1 1/2- 2 hours each night. Last night she stretched it out further a couple times, so that was nice for me to get a little extra sleep in between. My husband mentions that it seems I never go to bed. He is such a sweetie to want me and Layla to stay in our room while she feeds at night. Unfortunately, Layla thinks that it is better to sleep all day long and be wide-eyed at night... I am hoping that switches around soon!

Here are more pictures of our sweet girl. I can't stop taking them, so I hope you all don't mind the millions that I post on facebook. I know not everyone has facebook, so here are a couple I took of her today after her appointment. She is already growing so fast...

Thank you, Terry Nordborg, for the pack of long-sleeved onsies! She was in great need of those and I love how feminine they are. :)

Sleepy after her Dr. visit and a full tummy. 

I can't get over her hair... you can see the cow lick on the left is sort of naturally parting her hair.

My sleeping beauty. <3 td="">