A Day With The Dogs

Well, we expanded our little family.... with a four-legged fur baby. :)



Gibbs is an Australian Shepard rescue who is deaf. He has the sweetest personality and is so calm and relaxed. He just stole our hearts immediately. We've adopted him, but until we're able to move in about a month, he'll be staying with a foster home. :( It makes us sad, but we're going to enjoy taking him for a day here or there until he comes home for good. Today was one of those days.

We took Gibbs and Riley on a trip to Petsmart and then on a walk around a neighborhood park. He did really well on leash and was great in the store around people and other dogs. He did get excited about the guinea pig display- good thing we don't have any of those little guys, they'd be doomed! But all in all, he was so well behaved. Riley on the other hand did not like her daddy taking another dog around Petsmart. She was stressing out and wanting his attention for quite awhile when we first got to the store. After a little bit of time, she warmed up to Gibbs being with Casey and went back to her crazy little self. Both dogs were great at the park! Exploring and marking every tree along the walk. :) I think the walk wore them both out because we came home and both pups went to sleep (followed shortly by Casey). I just love my little family.

A few things we learned about Gibbs:
-He doesn't know how to jump into a car
-He is slightly scared of stairs
-He won't drink water out of our portable bowl
-He cannot walk in a straight line to save his little life

Here are some pictures of our day! Enjoy!

Single Digits...

We have 7 full days until I will be induced to bring Miss Malachi into the world...

People have been asking me over and over the last several days if I'm ready and excited and, of course, my answer is a smile and an enthusiastic "yes!" along with some little quip about being ready to have my body back or actually being able to fall asleep when I lay down, etc. The truth be told, as excited as I am to welcome our daughter to the outside world, I'm even more scared of having a daughter in the outside world. No matter how anxious I get over her "lack of movement" and overall health in my womb, I know that she is safe. No one can hurt her there. She isn't going to suffer as long as I can completely protect her, literally, with all I am.

The idea of my precious daughter exposed to anything, everything, and anybody scares me. How will I know she really is ok? How will I know what is causing her to cry? What happens when I can't protect her from other people? Their words? Their actions? Their influences? From things I can't see? From things I can't fix? I feel helpless in the thought that there is almost nothing I can do to save my daughter's heart, mind, and body from the "outside world".

It is a hard bit to swallow in the fact that it isn't entirely up to me to protect her. I really truly HAVE TO trust that GOD is going to protect the most precious thing in my entire life. It is so hard to let go, to let Him have her. I want to keep her wrapped up in me forever and ever, but for her to truly live, she has to have God in her life, and not me in between dictating to Him where and when He is allowed to intervene. Because I cannot control her body in health, I cannot mend her heart in heartbreak, I cannot shield her mind from cultural influences, but God can.

So, this is me publicly giving up my daughter and her entire life, future, and purpose to God. I cannot raise a woman of God on my own. But I can guide her to the one true God who will get her through anything she encounters in the outside world. I pray that she is so full of love for her Lord that she is spared heartbreak and hurt and she feels the undying love our Savior has for her early in life and all her life. There is no greater peace in faith.

Malachi, I love you so.

Tator Tot Casserole

My mom made this all my life growing up, and I love it. A few weeks ago, I just started craving this particular dish. I described it to Casey and he kind of scrunched up his nose at the sound of it so I didn't make it for awhile. Finally, I HAD to make it, I NEEDED it so badly. :)

Needless to say, but it was delicious!  Casey even enjoyed it and helped polish off the leftovers over the next couple of days. :)
Here's the recipe:
-1 bag frozen tator tots
-1 large can of Pork and Beans
-1 can cream of mushroom soup
-1 can cream of celery soup
-1lb ground turkey, or beef
-1 bag shredded cheese (my mom was appalled I added cheese, but Casey and I both agreed it was a great add!)

1. Brown your ground meat of choice, I season mine a little with seasoning salt, pepper, and maybe a touch of garlic salt.
2. Mix the browned meat, and both cans of soup together and spread along the bottom of a 9x13 pan
3. Add a layer of beans over the soup/meat mixture
4. *optional* add a layer of shredded cheese over beans
5. Line the top with tator tots until the whole pan is covered.
6. Follow the cooking directions on the bag of tator tots for oven temp and length of time!

Eat up, and I hope you enjoy!!

Project: Changing Table, Status: Complete!

It is finished! And I love the results! I looked at a few different options at Home Depot to use, but because I refused to spend even $10 more dollars on the table my options were limited. The drawer/shelf liners were the most promising at the prices of $6-$12 a roll. However, all they had were ugly (in my opinion) or clashing color choices for me. *sigh* So I took a break that night and hit Target the next day- SCORE! They had a pretty green and white drawer liner that matched the green baskets I already bought for the table perfectly!! All for the low, low price of $5.74!! I bought my find and Casey blessed it as not TOO girly (I was concerned because we want to be able to reuse it if we have a boy) and now it is complete. I love it. Is it perfect? No, but WE made this ours for our precious little one and we're very happy with that.

Dinner Simplicity

Our dinner tonight is a summer easy meal:
-pigs in a blanket baked with shredded cheese
-pork and beans
-bacon ranch pasta salad

Yum! Yum!