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Friday, November 30, 2012

High Five for Fridays!

Well I have to say my week has definitely been an interesting one. Between two sick babies (a 1 year old and a 23 year old) my week was a little off. BUT Here are my top 5 highlights from the past week :)

1. I got to spend some much needed extra time with my little family due to the Holidays and the icky bug floating around our house (I guess this one is a little bitter-sweet)

2. I decorated our table top Christmas tree with all the Girly decorations I could find :) Its our "It's a Girl" tree :) SO much fun for the whole family!

3. I got my first ever Cara Box and I could not have been more excited. Thanks to Wifessionals for making this possible it was so much fun!!If you are not part of this awesome gift exchange you should really try it out!

4.  We did a little shopping for the new baby...its safe to safe Emory will not need new clothes for a VERY long time. I just can't help myself!!

5. And finally my wounded finger. Yea I know the picture does not look that bad, but for real it was AWFUL!!! Come check out my blog Mouthwatering Monday Review to read all about it. The quick and dirty...My attention got diverted while opening a can and i sliced the tip of my finger prett badly! It bled for FOREVER!!

This was my exciting week! Hope your's was just as eventful (and maybe a little more upbeat!)


Playing Catch-up: Mouthwatering Monday's Review

So I know today is Friday and it has been 5 days since the recipe release...but I have been a little preoccupied this week! (sick bf and baby...my poor little guys) I promised pictures and a review of the Semi-Homemade Chili recipe on Monday so here goes....

First of all I did a little improvising on the recipe...I used a little less Chili Beans and a few more Pinto beans. I also used tomato sauce instead of tomato paste. All in all it was the basic recipe and turned out pretty AMAZING :)

I had planned on putting it in the crock pot when I got home and letting it simmer a good 3 or 4 hours before the bf got home...WRONG! BF was not feeling so hot and decided to call into work so he was waiting on me when i got there. If your man is anything like mine....they don't wait around for food when they are tired, feeling icky, and hungry. So there went that idea. NEW PLAN: put it in the crock pot on High and let it simmer for about an hour...yea that will work!

I am opening all the cans and pouring in the ingredients when I feel a little attachment on my ankle...MAMA MAMA MAMA..I look down and BAAAMM it happens...I sliced my finger with the metal can lid. We aren't talking about a little paper cut that has a little trickle of blood...no this was a fountain! And it wouldn't stop...I TRIED EVERYTHING! After a drenched towel and 4 band aids later it finally let up. I guess they aren't kidding when they tell you the amount of blood your body makes nearly triples when your pregnant!

After that 30 minute disaster I got back on track (no blood in the Chili thank goodness) and finished up the pot. I turned it on high to simmer and waited. And let me tell you it was well worth the wait.

The bf LOVED it and I have to say although Chili is not my favorite meal this Chili was AWESOME! Just enough sweet and just enough spicy! :) It was a huge hit at my house and I will be at yours as well.

I know I promised pictures, but with almost slicing my finger off and the speed at which the entire pot disappeared...I didn't manage to get any :/ I will get some next time!!

Join next Monday for another great recipe!

November Cara Box

You know those times when you walk to the mailbox and you see a special little package waiting inside? You can't even wait until you get up the driveway because you know there is something really exciting in that box and you have to find out what it is!! Well the Cara box started by Wifessionals is designed to give you that same exact feeling once a month :)



November was my first month joining in this fun little exchange and I have to say I could not have had more fun. I was paired up with Sureye, a sweet little blogger who also just found out she is expecting a little bundle. We had a great time getting to know each other and shopping for her was as much fun as receiving my own box!

November's theme was Childhood and what better way to remind you of being a child then to get a package in the mail.
Soooo...Here is what was inside :)


First thing I saw when i ripped into the box (before i made it all the way up the driveway) were all the Christmas ornaments decorating the box...let face it what kid did not like Christmas?? Then there was the Straw - ba-ba-ba-berry Shortcake rolls...because I LOVED this girl as a kid and love the snacks even more as an adult :)

Then of course there were the Sour Patch Kids candy canes because this was my favorite candy of all time!
The next thing I found as I dug deeper into the box (now parked in the driveway but too excited to get out of the car) was the red nail polish by Essie! (my favorite!)


And last but not least were these amazing sparkling orange drinks (with no caffeine)  for us prego girls who are at least trying to lay off the caffeine! The fact that they were Orange flavored only made them that much better. When I was little the only thing that made me feel better was an Orange slushie from Sonic!

Thank you so much to Sarai of Sureye and to Wifessionals for making this Cara Box swap so fun! I cannot wait to start again in December!

Monday, November 26, 2012

Mouthwatering Mondays!

Okay so everyone hates Monday's right? First day of he work week. You have to wake up early after a tiring weekend and get to work before the sun rises...work all day and come home to a messy house and a hungry family right?? SO the question of the day is What are you going to make for dinner?

Well here's to a new segment :) Mouthwatering Mondays! 

The Goal will be to provide a recipe for a quick and easy meal for a family of 4 


Today's Recipe: 

Semi-Homemade Chili 

Ingredients

3 cans Chili Beans
1 cans Pinto Beans
2 cans Pork and Beans
1 can Tomato Paste
1 can Mild Rotel
2 packs Chili Seasoning 
1/2 cup water
1 lb browned meat (I use ground beef)

Directions

1. Brown Meat in pan and stir in 1 pack of Chili Seasoning.
2. Mix all other ingredients in Crock Pot and turn on low
3. Stir in Browned meat
4. Let simmer for 4-6 hours
or
if you do not have 4-6 hours stir all ingredients in large pot and let simmer on stove until hot! (approx 1 hour)

Voila! Semi - Homemade chili is as easy as that :)

Pictures and reviews to come (after i make it tonight of course!!)



Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Dr appt and baby update :)

Today was mine and baby's 25 week appointment. We are both doing wonderfully with no problems to speak of! I am so thankful to have a healthy, happy, and beautiful ( I'm sure) baby girl growing inside me.

Weird side effect of pregnancy #1:
So I have noticed lately that every time I wore my spoon ring my skin would itch. After about a week of the itching my finger actually had big blisters right where my ring sits! Obviously I stopped wearing the ring ( the same ring I have wore every day for 6 years) but I decided to venture put and wear a different ring on a completely different finger....same result!
My body has all of a sudden become allergic to silver!! This is really killing me because I LOVE my jewelry! Hopefully everything returns to normal after the baby!

In other news my babies are already fighting! Baby boy falls asleep on my chest just about every night so last night he is laying on my chest and Emory starts kicking away. I don't just mean a little flutter kick every now and then..it was non stop for about 5 minutes!! Pretty sure she was saying get off my mommy and he is just over here snoozing away! It will be very entertaining when she gets here that's for sure!

That's all for now! Hope everyone has a great holiday weekend I know I will. We all have a lot to be thankful for and the list grows every year for me :)

Friday, November 16, 2012

Christmas ideas & ORIGAMI OWL

It's Friday and you know what that means....that I get to spend two whole days with both of my boys! BF doesn't have to work and neither does this tired mommy. I am not sure what the weekend will have in store for us, but I know we need to do some Christmas shopping for our little man.

I am thinking about some sort of swing set from Santa this year. He loves to be outside and right now we do not have one at our house. BF wants to get him a power wheels truck (imagine that!) So we are at a little stand still in what to do.

Attention all LADIES: I have the perfect solution to the problem of what to get your mother, MIL, sister or any other woman in your life. Origami Owl personalized lockets. These things are the cutest things since the Pandora craze! Look them up online http://www.origamiowl.com/ I got one for my mother (and myself) and I cannot wait for them to get here!

Living Lockets




Tuesday, November 13, 2012

BF and baby boy

I guess it is safe to say that my heart would not be complete without either of my boys! I love them both more than I could ever imagine possible.

On my wonderful (well deserved) vacation last week I got to spend a lot more time with both of them. Although the BF still had to work we got to spend a couple hours that we usually do not get.

One special moment that melts my heart I managed to get a photo of :)

With our baby girls arrival getting closer and Christmas just around the corner the BF is working a lot and me and baby usually do most of the cuddling before he gets home, so this was one special moment that doesn't happen often.

Baby boy is doing well too. I have been trying my best to get him to say sissy or her name, but the most we have accomplished is BABY. I guess that will have to do for now. I am sure just like me and my bubby they will have their own names for each other anyway!

His favorite pass time has always been to play outside, so with the recent cold weather he has not been too happy. Thankfully we had one pretty day last week and he got to run off some energy. My little Ford man had a blast and so did mommy. :)

Make sure to follow me on Instagram (cwalke30) for some more sweet pics of daddy and baby :)

Monday, November 12, 2012

Update on the baby bump- week 24

Well it's week 24 and I have to say I am really starting to enjoy being pregnant!

Emory is apparently a pro soccer player and trust me I am pretty sure she could win the national title! I love every single kick, but it seems like midnight is her favorite time to play. Daddy has finally got to feel her moving and he could not be more excited.

I have been on a much needed (and if you ask me a well deserved) vacation from work the past week and started a lot of shopping for the baby :) she now has a collection of 8 baby headbands and a new set of cradle sheets. I also got her little baby book started and I am Sooo excited. It's not finished, but its a pretty good start.

I am going to register this week for her baby shower! Anyone have anything special they recommend??

Stay tuned for more exciting baby news!