6 Weeks Old

96 Hours

In 96 hours we had some strange luck...

Yesterday and today seem to have settled down and I am thankful for that but the 96 hours prior to yesterday were just weird.  Blog worthy weird :)  So here goes...

Last week I joined a gym to try and get healthy.  So for the first month I can bring two guests at a time for free.  So on Friday, Jay and I decided to take Carter swimming.  We dropped Madelynn off with my mom and went to the Courthouse and enjoyed the pool and the hot tub.  Carter had a great time and was acting completely normal.  When we finished up we drove to my mom's to pick up Madelynn.  As soon as we got there Carter started acting strange.  He was whining and after a couple minutes started crying for no reason.  I was actually a little irritated because I just thought he was being naughty.  Jay held him for a bit and sat at the computer with him for a bit while I was feeding Madelynn.  The next thing I hear is a big splashing sound and Jay shouting whoaaaaaa... My first thought was he had a glass of water and spilled it but then I realized Carter didn't have water.  Then I knew he must have puked.  Carter has never puked before so this was one of those paniky moments for me.  I threw Madelynn at my mom and ran around the couch to see vomit everywhere and it was still coming.  My mom grabbed a bowl and I spent the next couple of minutes rubbing Carters back and watching him throw up everything he had eaten for days.  It was extremely painful to watch!  Not to mention that he had thrown up all over Jay, all over the floor, the chair, the computer desk, and even the keyboard for the computer.  Wow.  That was all I could think.  I had moments of thinking "what do I do?"  I was waiting for the adreneline to kick in and tell me what to do but there was vomit everywhere and I just stood there holding the bowl.  For those of you that don't know this about me I have a huge fear of throwing up.  I hate throwing up and I panic when others throw up within five miles of me...literally.  The great thing is that God gave me a supernatural desire to help my son and comfort him.  Not to mention I had a lot to clean up at my poor moms house.  I scrubbed, cleaned, and disinfected for at least 20 minutes and even had to clean again after he threw up again on the kitchen floor.  We finally made it out of there and got in the car to head home hoping and praying he wouldn't throw up in the car...he did.  Thankfully Jay caught most of it in the bowl because I drove so that we could take advantage of his long arms in case we needed to catch vomit.  It was quite the experience. 

As soon as we got home Jay and Carter showered, got clean clothes on, covered the couches and got Carter nice and snuggly on the couch with daddy.  And then he threw up again...and again, and again.  Everytime I would get Jay and Carter wiped off, the towels and blankets in the laundry room, and Carter settled down, it would start all over again.  I could not keep up with the laundry or with keeping Carter clean.  And during all of this time Madelynn was crying and needing to eat.  I started feeding her twice and both times Carter started throwing up all over Jay.  And honestly, it is a two person job when your two year old is puking.  I was so torn and kept thinking about how badly I needed and wanted to disinfect the whole house, I needed to disinfect his carseat, get the puke bowl that was still sitting on the front porch (wouldn't that have been a nice surprise if someone stopped by), get laundry going, feed my daughter, mop the bathroom floor because he threw up in there, clean my house in case Jay and I got sick, etc, etc...I was overwhelmed.  And I needed to keep Carter drinking but I knew he would throw it up.  I was so overwhelmed.  We decided to give him some apple juice mixed with water...big mistake!  Minutes later we saw that all over Carter and Jay.  Jay and Carter ended up having two showers that evening and I eventually went to the store with Madelynn to get Pedialyte.  Thankfully that worked and he was able to keep tiny amounts of that down at a time.  Finally about 8 he was done puking!  We kept him up till 10:30 just to make sure he was done throwing up then put him in bed fearing what our night would end up looking like.  God was so gracious to me though because Carter slept the entire night and never threw up again!  Even Madelynn had an amazing night only waking up once to eat.  Woohoo...was not expecting to have an amazing night! 

Saturday was pretty uneventful.  We laid low and kept Carter home all day.  I ran a couple errands and worked out at the gym but other than that we were home all day.  Sunday morning Jay got up to go to work and couldn't find the keys for the van (yes, we only have one set).  But at 4 in the morning I wasn't about to get about and search for keys and Jay was riding his bike to work anyway.  So I stayed home all day with both kids and didn't go to church just in case Carter was still sick.  I am working on my Master's degree right now and found out on Sunday morning that the class I just finished up was a class that I did not need and I had just waisted $1500 and three months of my life.  I was pretty devastated!  More on that later.  We had a date night planned for that evening and my dad and Lori were going to babysit so all day I just prayed that Carter was okay and that neither Jay or I caught the bug so that we could go out to dinner.  Well, as soon as Carter woke up from his nap I realized that I wasn't going to get to go out to dinner with Jay because Carter had a fever :(  I was devastated.  I needed a break so badly and couldn't believe I was going to have to call my dad and cancel.  We had tried the Sunday before to go out as well and that got cancelled too so this was a double disappointment for me.  The hardest part of all of it was that I had to tell my sweet boy that he didn't get to go to "papas" house.  He was so sad and it broke my heart! 

Thankfully I have a wonderful husband who came home and suggested we grab a pizza from Pizza Hut and take it to a park and then go walk around Toys R Us.  Brilliant!  A date night with my family is just as wonderful and I was ecstatic!  So I get the kids dressed, feed Madelynn, pack a couple things for the park, call and order a pizza...and we can't find the van keys...anywhere.  At this point I am on the verge of tears!  After probably 20 minutes of destroying our house trying to find the keys I decide I am desperate enough to get out of the house that I am going to take the Honda, drive to my moms and get her carseat (since Carter's was locked in the van), drive back home to get the family and go out like we had planned.  We had a nice time at the park and Carter was in heaven.  After the park we headed out to Toys R Us only to find out that they are closed because it is a Sunday evening...seriously? 

The next morning when Carter woke up with another fever I decided to cancel school so that I could stay home with my boy and help get him healthy.  By the way, still can't find the keys!  Later that morning while on the phone with Jay he tells me the he scuffed the handle on his new bike that he rode to work again that morning.  I thought, okay, no big deal.  So I ask him how he scuffed it...he tells me he fell off his bike.  Again, I thought, hmmm...  So I ask him if he is okay and he tells me that he may have broken his hand.  He has to ride over railroad tracks to get to work which were wet because it was raining and as soon as his front tire hit the track, it slipped to the left and he fell to the right catching himself with his hand.  Honestly, my first thought was "are you kidding me?!?!?!?!?!"  He had it checked out at the hospital while he was there (he does spend a lot of time at the hospital for his job) and the consensus seemed to be that it very likely was broken but the bone they thought was broken is a really hard one to see in an x-ray and that either way it would need to be splinted for a while.  About 1:30 he calls me saying he is in a ton of pain and can't use his hand at all and is coming home and had to take the next day off work as well.  Of course he can't ride his bike home and Carter was napping so we asked my dad to go pick him up and bring him home.  Oh and to add to all of this and my date night drama, we had planned to have my mom babysit that night so that we could go out...now I wasn't sure we were going to go again.  I felt like we weren't supposed to go on a date for some strange reason.  After he got home he headed down to the ER for x-rays which showed just what they thought...could be broken but can't really tell in the x-ray.  So he is in a lovely splint, can't go back to work until next Tuesday (all unpaid because we used all of his sick time when Madelynn was born), and won't be riding his new bike to work for a little while.

So now you may think I am super selfish but I told Jay as long as he could walk and eat we were still going out to dinner!  So finally at 6:30 (an hour and a half later than planned) we are walking out the door to go out.  And we can't find the Olive Garden gift card that was the reason we were going out to dinner in the first place.  Seriously, couldn't find it anywhere!  We really didn't want to spend money on dinner, especially after the whole hand thing and not being able to work for a week.  But, we decided it was necessary that we get out so we headed out the door planning to try the new Venti's just around the corner from our house.  We park, walk up to the door only to read a sign that says they closed at four for a Russian group.  Seriously...So we drive all the way to North Keizer to try Carusso's that we had heard great things about.  Closed on Mondays.  Are you kidding me?  So we end up at Best Little Road House and had a lovely dinner and then came straight home to a screaming baby girl and a tired and feverish little boy.  What a day!  What a week!

That ends the drama of our 96 hours...

The breaking point for me was when Carter woke up with a fever on Sunday afternoon and I had to cancel our date night.  I felt bad for being so upset about it but it was just that moment for me that I couldn't handle much else.  From my breaking point though my attitute improved greatly and everything else that happened was just funny.  Jay and I just had to laugh. 

Yesterday morning (May 1st) was a very refreshing morning for me.  I felt like it was God's way of refreshing me and helping me see that we could start fresh in a brand new day and a brand new month.  I love May because it is my birthday month and the last full month of school.  I love it even more now that I am a mom because of Mother's Day.  I love that it is the month before summer and the hope of more sunshine and summer activities. 

I am thankful for my husband who loves me very much.  I am thankful for two beautiful, healthy, happy kids who fill me with more love and joy than I new possible!  And I am thankful for all of my family and friends who are so supportive of me and my family and who encouraged me throughout my annoying week.  After Jay hurt his hand I had two people offer to bring us dinner that night.  Wow, what a blessing.  I am thankful.  I had to remind myself after those 96 hours of all the amazing blessings in my life.  We are blessed.

And Jay and I are still healthy and have not caught Carter's bug...miracle?

Oh, and we found the keys...
In Jay's pants pockets on the bedroom floor (pretty much the only place we didn't look and yet one of the most obvious places).  The weird thing is that I was the last one to drive the van so we still cannot figure out how they ended up in Jay's pants pocket.  A question I do plan on asking God someday when I get to Heaven :) 



  

My Sweet Girl

2012 Week #14

3 large chicken breasts

5 C corn flakes
3/4 C flour
1/2 t salt
1/2 C milk
6 T olive oil
1 12 oz package bowtie noodles (farfalle)

Sauce:

1 10 oz container Philadelphia Cooking Cream (Italian Cheese and Herb Flavor)
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 C chicken broth
1/2 C milk

fresh parsley, chopped (optional)

 

In a small food processor crush the corn flakes into crumbs.

Add the 1/2 t salt to the 3/4 C flour. Stir to combine.

Place the flour, milk and crushed cornflakes each into their own separate pan. Loaf pans work well for this. If you don't have three loaf pans, do not dismay. You could use pie tins, or round cake pans...what ever works for you.

Place your chicken breasts in a gallon sized Ziploc bag and seal the top.

Pound the chicken flat with a meat mallet. You will really be thankful for the Ziploc bag in this step. Who wants a bunch of chicken guts flying around their kitchen? 

Take a pair of sharp kitchen scissors and cut each breast in half. 

Dredge the chicken in the flour. Be sure it gets covered on both sides.

Lay the floured chicken onto a small cookie sheet and slide the sheet into the freezer. Let it hang out there for about 5 minutes.

Start cooking your pasta.

Remove the chicken from the freezer and dredge each piece in the milk......

.....and then immediately into the corn flake crumbs. Again, be sure both sides are covered well.

Add the olive oil to a hot skillet.

Carefully lay each chicken piece into the hot oil. Sprinkle with a little bit of salt and pepper. Cook over medium high heat for about 5 minutes....

....or until the underside of each piece is nice and golden brown. Turn the pieces over. If the bottom of the pan is dry add just a bit more olive oil to the side of the pan. Swirl the pan around a bit to let the oil flow to all sides.

Cover the pan and reduce the heat to medium. Let the chicken cook for about 7 more minutes, being careful not to burn the bottoms.

When your chicken has been cooked through remove it from the pan and place it on a plate. Cover with tin foil.

Into the same pan pour your broth, Philly Cooking Creme, Cream of Chicken, and milk. Whisk the sauce around and let it get all warm and bubbly. Should only take about 3 minutes.

Slice your chicken into strips and serve over your cooked pasta and sauce. Garnish with chopped parsley if you choose.

 

 

This was pretty good but sort of a disaster as I was cooking it!  The chicken was taking forever to cook so it was getting burned on the outside and still not done in the middle.  Oil was flying everywhere and every time I took off the lid I had grease flying on my arms.  The kitchen was a DISASTER by the time I was done and then the end product was okay but nothing overly fantastic.  I did like the corn flakes as the breading but I think if I ever try this again I will bake the chicken.  I might try it again just so that I can see if I like it baked and if that makes it easier and less messy.  If anyone decides to try this one, let me know what you did and how it turned out.  

 

I just joined the gym this week so I can't be making meals like this much anymore.  Okay, Pinterest, find me some healthy meals that my family will like :)  I will gladly take recommendations from any of you that cook healthy meals...hint hint, Mallory Crain ;)    

 

2012 Week #13

Cheesy Broccoli Soup

2 Tablespoons butter
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 cup finely chopped carrot
1 stalk celery, finely chopped (feel free to add more celery if you like celery; I don't, so I don't add much)
1 Tablespoon minced garlic
4 cups chicken broth (I usually use a mixture of low-sodium chicken broth and broth made with chicken soup base because it gives it such nice flavor)
2 large baking potatoes, peeled and chopped
1 Tablespoon flour
1/2 cup water
2/3 cup milk
2 cups chopped broccoli
2 heaping cups shredded cheddar cheese

Melt the butter in a large soup pot. Add onions, carrots, and celery and saute over medium heat until tender. Add garlic and cook 1 or 2 additional minutes. Add chicken broth and potatoes, bring to a boil, and cook until potatoes are tender. Mix flour with water, add, and simmer until soup is slightly thickened. Add milk and broccoli and cook until broccoli is just tender and soup is heated through. Stir in cheese, allow to melt, and serve.

We loved this soup! Well, I did :) I think Jay did too. Carter wasn't interested but he was sick and he doesn't eat much when he has a fever. I thought it was super easy and doesn't have tons of ingredients. Loved it!

Madelynn is ONE month old!

Our baby girl turned one month old yesterday. Time goes by so fast. She is such a sweet little lady and we are madly in love with her. She is just as cute as can be!

She is still in newborn clothes and newborn diapers. She is a petite little thing! At her two week appointment she was 7 lbs 8 ounces (25th percentile) and 20 1/2 inches long (50th percentile). Her head was only in the 40th percentile which made me laugh because I don't think Carter's was ever less than 70th percentile.

She smiled at me for the first time at 3 weeks old. I know...I almost didn't believe it either. But since then she has smiled for me two more times and two other people once. She really looks at us now in the eyes and seems so ready to smile lots...I know it's coming soon. She takes really great naps during the day (at least three long 2-3 hour naps every day and some shorter ones too).

She is super patient with her brother (who LOVES to hold her and kiss her). She eats great, sleeps all day, and loves to be held at night (we are working on that). She sleeps 3-4 hours at a time at night (usually) but sometimes is difficult to get to sleep.

It seems like she is going to have blue eyes just like her daddy and brother but it might be too early to really be able to tell.

She doesn't like taking a pacifier or swinging in her swing...apparently my kids just don't do either of those things. She still sleeps in our room in the pack n play and I'm not quite feeling ready to send her to her own room yet. Carter was in his own room at 26 days old so we are a little late with her :) Soon...

We are so thankful for our sweet girl! She completes our family (for now) and has brought so much joy into our home. Right now she is sound asleep on daddy and I just love watching that!

We love you Mady girl!

2012 Week #12

Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos

3 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup green salsa
1 Tbsp fresh lime juice (juice from half a lime)
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 Tbsp chopped cilantro
2 Tbsp green onions
2 cups shredded cooked chicken
1 cup shredded Mexican flavored cheese
small four or corn tortillas
kosher salt
cooking spray


Preheat your oven to 425 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, mix the cream cheese, salsa, lime juice, ground cumin, chili
powder, onion powder and garlic. Once combined, stir in the cilantro and green
onions. Add the chicken and cheese; mix thoroughly.
(If you decided to prep this in advance, refrigerate the mixture at this point until
ready to continue.)
Working with a few tortillas at a time, heat them in the microwave between two paper towels until they are soft enough to roll (about 20 – 30 seconds).
Spoon 2-3 Tablespoons of the chicken mixture onto the lower third of a tortilla. Roll the tortilla as tightly as you can. Place the rolled tortilla seam side down on the baking sheet. Repeat with remaining tortillas until the mixture is gone. Make sure the taquitos are not touching each other. Spray the tops lightly with cooking spray and sprinkle with kosher salt.
Bake for 15 – 20 minutes or until crisp and golden.
Serve with salsa, sour cream or guacamole.

We really liked these but sadly they didn't do great things to Madelynn's tummy. So no more of these for me for a while along with many other things :(

And here are my sweet babies...Carter just loves holding Madelynn but sadly this time she was not thrilled. Usually she is super patient and likes being around her brother but I just like this picture :)

And my sweet girl...