The Milk Factory

I've always been a big proponent of breastfeeding. My mom breastfed all five of us (at various lengths) and so naturally, I always imagined doing the same for my children. I planned to breastfeed Kolbe, even after discovering he would be born with a cleft lip. After his chaotic birth (which is another story in itself), the doctors informed me that he also had a cleft palate, making it impossible for Kolbe to suck. He would be forced to eat through chewing, making breastfeeding virtually impossible. Not one to give up, I decided to pump for Kolbe. While this still provided Kolbe with the very important breast milk that he needed, it certainly wasn't what I had hoped for and dreamed up.

But along came Reagan! And I was bound and determined to make our experience the best it could be. God certainly blessed me with a wonderful nursing experience with Reagan. Despite his prematurity and despite my C-section and blood pressure problems before and afterward, things couldn't have gone more smoothly in the beginning. He took to nursing right away and never turned back!

Nursing has created such a special bond between Reagan and me, though I must admit, I didn't necessarily feel the way about nursing that everyone said I would feel. Yes, I was so happy that I was able to provide nourishment for my little guy, but I didn't feel that complete connection type feeling that people always talk about. It was certainly very satisfying though, as a mother to be able to care for my baby in that way. I'm so glad I did it!!! And will absolutely do it again if God blesses us with any more kiddos.

Needless to say, Reagan has become such a mama's boy. Bad. If I'm within a 10 mile radius, he knows. There are times it can be a bit much (like when I'm trying to give Kolbe a little attention), but there are also times I absolutely love having that special connection with my little guy. He knows I love him and I know he loves me. It's awesome!

Around the time Reagan turned ten months old, that un-welcomed "friend" of mine returned, throwing things off kilter a bit. I was absolutely bound and determined to make it to Reagan's first birthday before giving up nursing and he seemed to have no intention of giving it up either, despite the slow down in milk production. A few weeks ago, however (yes, after his first birthday!) we decided to stop.

Once Reagan finally learned how to drink out of a sippy cup, and I knew he'd be able to get fluids, I felt more comfortable with letting go. Besides, when he was nursing (just before bed), it was lasting only a few minutes. I knew he wasn't getting any nourishment from it. It was simply for comfort.

So on the first night with no nursing, I scooped up my little man and held him close and told him how much I love him. And I told him how happy I was that I was able to nurse him for his first year of life. And I told him how thankful I was that he is my son. I placed him in his bed and covered him up and busied myself with picking up a few toys around the room. By the time I returned to his bedside, he was already fast asleep. Just like that, it was over.

Mark came in and stood beside me as we looked at our little guy. I started to cry. I knew my body was telling me that it was time to move on, and obviously Reagan was ok with it too, but something it my heart just felt so sad about letting go of nursing. I guess bittersweet would be a better description. Bitter in that I was letting go of something that kept Reagan a baby, something that kept me connected to him so closely, and something that cemented the fact that I was providing for him. But it was sweet in that I knew I had given it my all, knew I had been successful, and knew that Reagan is the baby he is today because of my efforts. Such a satisfying feeling. I can't imagine doing it any other way.

Three Thought Thursday: Episode 8

1. Reagan has entered the "poor, unfortunate soul" phase of life. Ugh. Kolbe went through the same phase around the same age. Call it teething, call it the inability to communicate, call it lack of understanding of the way the world works...whatever you call it, I have to admit, it's utterly annoying at some times. (usually like around 7:00pm when I've heard it all day...) Don't get me wrong, I love my little baby, but man o' man, he has just been pouring on the drama lately! I set him down; he cries. I pick him up; he cries. I put him in his booster chair; he cries. I get up to get a napkin; he cries. We get to the bottom of his carton of yogurt; he cries. I put him in his car seat; he arches his back and cries. And we're not talking about a small little pout. We're talking full on, throw his head back, crocodile tears, so-hard-that-no-sound-comes-out cries. It's ridiculous. And the second he gets his way, he stops. When Kolbe went through this phase, Mark and I would bust out our best rendition of the Ursula song "poor, unfortunate soul!!!...in pain....in need..." from The Little Mermaid. Come on, you know what song I'm talking about! Needless to say, we've reprised our role a little over a year later for Mr. Reagan. Can't wait for this phase to pass! Really, son! Life is not that bad!!!

2. Mark and I are expecting! ...A godchild, that is. I'm sure a few people just fell out of their chairs. (though I'm sure some of you probably wouldn't be surprise, considering our previous track record...) Abby and Andy came over a few nights ago (in the gushing snow) to drop off some of my borrowed maternity clothes and asked if Mark and I would be willing to be their little baby John's godparents. We, of course, were ecstatic and happy to take on such an important responsibility. (I think I actually gasped when they asked...) Mark and I have always viewed the roll of godparents to be something so vital and important. As Mark always says, his job as a father and husband is to help get the boys and me to heaven. And should we ever leave our children behind on this earth (God forbid...) we would certainly hope that someone else would seek this same goal for our boys. Not to mention the fact that godparents can join in the journey with the parents through prayer and example. We're still about eleven weeks away from meeting our little nephew and godson, John, but we're so excited to serve in this special way in his life and hope that we can be all that Andy and Abby would expect us to be! Thanks again, A & A, for such an honor!!!

3. I guess I'll just stick with the baby theme this week...

I spent two solid years either being the pregnant lady or the lady with a new baby for all our friends and family. It's been so interesting over the past several months to actually be on the outside and see what it's like for other friends and family members either trying to get pregnant or experiencing their first pregnancies. In some cases, I've seen so many similarities to Mark and my journey. In others, it's been so different. It just makes me realize that life is precious and beautiful to all who endeavor to join with God and create it. It's exciting, it's heart-breaking, it's time consuming and pride-reducing. It's sacrificial, it's all-encompassing, it's exhausting and exhilarating. It's the journey of falling in love!

I have four friends or family members who are due literally within days of each other, the first being my sister-in-law, Casey, who is due March 31st. A friend of mine, who was due a few days after Casey, ended up having her baby on Tuesday in a manner similar to my experience with Kolbe. I have yet to go see her at the hospital, but just hearing about it from an outsider's perspective has been somewhat poignant for me. When I had Kolb, I felt like I was somewhat alone. Like I was the only one who had ever gone through such an experience. But something about just hearing of how this precious little guy arrived so early to such a beautiful, deserving mama has made me re-recognize the beauty of each woman's own journey. We may not all be meant to have the perfect conception, pregnancy, or delivery we dream of as little girls, but if God calls us to be mothers, we are all meant to experience the beauty of celebrating each new life. And I have completely enjoyed witnessing all my soon to be mama friends thus far. I can't wait for their babies' births! And I look forward with hope for my friends who are destined to be mothers in the future!

A Little Piece of Awesomeness

Let me just tell you how awesome my kitchen "window" is. I say "window" with quotation marks around it because, technically, there is no glass and it definitely doesn't look from the inside of our house to the outside of our house. But it does look from the kitchen in to the family room. Something I've been wanting to do for eons.

You see, when I bought our house, I was a mere twenty-one years old. I was single, starting a new career as a teacher, and far from thinking about kids or cooking elaborate meals. And certainly no where near fathoming how a kitchen would affect those two things. Now I'm (cough, cough) twenty-seven and have two kiddos and a husband all in this same charming (to put it kindly), little house.

Don't get me wrong; there are many things I love about this house. Like the fact that all three bedrooms have walk-in closets. Big walk-in closets. Or our huge brick fireplace. Or heck, the mere fact that we have a house! But it's safe to say that the kitchen isn't high up on my list of loves. It's narrow, old, and yucky. A shotgun kitchen of sorts. You can't open both the dishwasher and oven at the same time. And the biggest problem? You can't see from the kitchen in to the family room without walking around the corner to the table area. Until now!

One of my favorite houses in the whole world is my Popo and Mom Helen's house here in Lubbock. It's simply awesome. And one of my favorite features of it is a little "window" that is above the kitchen sink and looks in to the family room. I always thought it was so cool. So naturally, after I bought our house, I began dreaming of having one above my sink. I'd be able to stay in the kitchen and still be a part of whatever was going on in the family room. Or still be able to watch the TV if I was alone. It was always one of those someday... type things.

But around the time Reagan turned about six-months-old, we developed a little problem at the Asmussen Household: shenanigans. I'd run to the kitchen to throw together lunch or put the dishes in the dishwasher only to hear Reagan's wailing seconds after I walked away. By the time I'd dash back around the corner, it was too late to figure out what happened. I just assumed it was Kolbe attacking Reagan for taking a toy or Kolbe pushing Reagan over or Kolbe...

I began to covet my kitchen "window" more than ever.

Somewhere in this time frame, I must have mentioned it around my cousin Mandi's husband, Joe. In his spare time (when he's not busy being an orthopedic surgeon...), he likes to do any kind of home improvement project, build things, do wood working, etc. A few months ago he finished up on a Murphy bed that is one of the most impressive hand-made things I've ever seen. Mad skills.

He decided he would donate his time (as if he really has any!) to creating this "window" for me. Mark was willing to help out, eager to learn a few things, and excited to create something cool for the kitchen. They planned to complete the project the Saturday the boys and I were in Houston. (the one where we were supposed to be home already but got stuck in Houston...yet another good reason we didn't make it home!) As it turned out, Joe's dad Pat (Mr. Bergman, as he's known to us) came to town for a visit at the last minute and joined the construction team.

Unfortunately, what was intended to be a fairly straight-forward project became a little bit complicated when they knocked out the "window" only to find a huge sewage pipe right through the middle. They started around 8:30 in the morning and Mark didn't call me to tell me they were done until around 10:30 at night. A ton of work for so a longly desired window!!!

Needless to say, I have yet to think of words to thank both Joe and Mr. Bergman for their efforts. Luckily, Mark gets to see just how much I love the "window" every day, so he knows how thankful I am. And he's thankful too! But the fact that the Bergmans gave their time and knowlege to making something so special for me just means so much. I feel unworthy! I am unworthy!

I know, I know. I'm probably making it sound like they built me a whole new house, but hey, to me, this is something extremely special! And it's the little things that make life so enjoyable! Here's why my little window is so awesome:

- It's been little over a week since we got home from Houston. Since then, I've busted Kolbe countless times. I was right. Most of the shenanigans were because of him...

- I've busted Reagan a hand full of times too! Sneaky little one-year-old! He tries to play it off by crying, but sometimes he's the one causing it!!!

- Our kitchen actually feels bigger! I never imagined this effect, but it's true. Something about the light and air filtering in makes it feel not as claustrophobic.

- I know I'll never live in my Popo and Mom Helen's House, but this makes mine just a little bit more like theirs.

- It's pretty darn nice to be able to see the TV while doing dishes. Especially while the Olympics are on!

I'm sure as I spend more and more (and more) time in the kitchen, there will be more and more reasons for me to love it! I am so thankful!

Looking at it from the kitchen side...
Looking at it from the family room (I'm still not sold on the mirror beside it...)

Looking at it from the hallway

Any way you look at it, it's pretty awesome!!!

Ew-eee. Yucky.

I couldn't help but opt for that title (a commonly heard saying of Kolbe's) for this post, considering the subject matter. And technically, I should have written this post about a week ago, but our travelling snafu has held me up. (I actually have a whole list in my book o' lists of topics that I need to write about...)

But back to the topic at hand. Barfing. And diarrhea. And not in a toilet. For either.

Yes, for the first time in my mommy career, we were hit with the infamous stomach bug. Actually, I think Kolbe might have had a little bit of it as a baby, but it was in the phase of babyhood prior to "real" food. So it was just like magnified spit-up. And of course there was that bout of it that Mark and I had two Thanksgivings ago when I was about six months pregnant with Reagan. Evil. And then there were a few other barfing episodes, but not due to sickness. For example, that one time Reagan ate the paper towel at Walmart...

With the number of times we were in the airport, the visit to the Shriners Hospital, a trip to the public playground at The Woodlands mall, and a spin on the carousel, there were multiple opportunities for us to pick it up. On Friday night, after our second trip to the airport to attempt to get home and after having a mini-meltdown over said attempt, I put the boys to bed at Pinkie and Pa's and went to bed fairly early myself. Around 2am, I heard Reagan stirring and assumed he was just rolling around a bit. No crying involved. Until those cringe inducing sounds began to pour forth from his mouth. Along with other things. I didn't even need to turn the lights on to know what happened. The sounds and smells told it all.

So not only were we not back at home, but now we had a barfer too. Lovely.

But as I wrote about earlier this week, God has his reasons. And I suppose, God had me stay in Houston precisely for this event. Before I even took Reagan out of the pack 'n play, I rushed down stairs to get my mom. This was something only she could help with. She rushed upstairs with me and while I carried Reagan to the tub to clean him up (yes, he threw up laying down, so I'm sure you can imagine how nasty he was) she cleaned out his entire bed from top to bottom. And then got it set back up with towels and what not. As I cuddled my poor sweet baby, he managed to get sick again (into my mom's new kitchen sink this time). Ew-eee. Yucky.

Before too long, I was able to get him back to sleep. The following morning, my mom rushed off to the grocery store to grab some Pedialyte, ginger ale, chicken and rice soup, crackers, etc. not just for Reagan, but for any other unfortunate victims as well. While I know Mark would have eagerly helped me out with this situation had he been there, there was something so nice about having my mom there to help me. After all, with five kiddos, this was far from her first round of this nonsense. Nothing like having training from an expert! She's the best.

By Sunday when we finally made it home, Reagan seemed to be on the road to recovery. Just trying to get the diapie cleared up. But I certainly wasn't going to get off that clean. After a little nap of my own while the boys were sleeping, I woke up with a not-so-good feeling in my belly. I managed to struggle through mass and make it home just in time for things to go from bad to worse. Ugh. Luckily this time Mark was available to help me out with the boys and the majority of the nastiness only lasted about five hours. Happy Valentine's Day, dear!

Unfortunately, the following day Mark did have to go to work so I was left at home to recover with both of the boys. Which brings me to another thing: every other job in America gets sick leave, right!?! Usually to the tune of about ten days a year. Or even one day a month. Not this job! When you're sick, there's no laying in bed recovering with a bowl of soup, a cup of Sprite, and lots of sleep. Nope. Life goes on as normal. No two-year-old or one-year-old is going to be ok with "Would you mind playing by yourself for the whole day?" or "Mama needs to lay down for a few hours; I'm feeling a little light-headed." Ha!

But I suppose that's what I signed up for when I decided to be a stay-at-home mom. Hopefully one day in the future Mark will actually be in the position to be able to take a day off when something like this comes up. But let's just not hope that that day in the future is any time too soon...I could go the rest of motherhood without another run-in with that stuff! Ew-eee. Yucky.

Three Thought Thursday: Episode 7

1. I hate vinyl tablecloths. I mean, for their intended use, I guess their ideal for homes with children. But ugh. Nothing says "picnic" like a big piece of plastic draped across the table. And still, I found myself at Target this morning walking past a clearance display with khaki colored vinyl table cloths for just a few bucks and I instantly snapping up not just one, but two in my table's size. (might as well have a back-up for when the monsters manage to destroy the first...) I attempted to do the fabric table cloth thing for a while after Kolbe was born, but let's get real: I'd be forced to throw that thing in the washing machine every single day with a two-year-old and a one-year-old. Heck, I'm lucky if they can manage to keep a meal on their plates! Actually, I should be honest, Reagan doesn't even use a plate. I just put whatever he's eating right on the table to avoid him throwing the plate on the floor. One day I'll have a lovely looking table cloth that exudes sophistication and style. For now, despite my disdain for their appearance, I'll go with convenience. It's indoor picnics year round.

2. I'm obsessed with The Olympics. Literally right now as I type I have curling on in the background. Curling. I somehow feel compelled to watch people play essentially shuffleboard on ice. But to tell the whole story, my parents raised us on watching the Olympics every year that they came up and several of my most vivid memories as a child evolved around The Olympics. I especially remember the Summer Olympics in Atlanta in 1996. We were living in Columbus, MS, just a few hours away so The Olympics were all the rage. The neighborhood girls and I did gymnastics in the front yard to songs on the radio. So endearing. I tend to prefer the summer Olympics, but I'm not one to skip on the winter ones either. I knew they were coming up but didn't really think much about them until the opening ceremonies a few nights ago. Now I'm completely hooked and committed to watching whatever sport is on whenever I have a few free minutes. There's just something about the competition, pride, and emotion that goes in to these games. Last night Mark and I had the snowboarding on as Kolbe played on the floor with his bowling set. After knocking down all of the pins, he flipped the bin that stores the set over and climbed up on top of it, ala gold medal podium style. I remember doing just the same on my mom's mixing bowls as a child. So adorable!

3. For all you Catholic-folk out there, you know what time of year it is...Lent! And while it's certainly a wonderful time of year to deepen your faith, it's also a wonderful time of year to expand that cooking repertoire and sharpen up on a few no-meat recipes. At least that's what I plan to do this Lent. Prior to becoming a stay-at-home mom, I was really never much of a cook. Now I really love to cook and try out new recipes, though I'm certainly no pro yet! In previous years, throughout the season of Lent, Friday became a good excuse to pick up pricey fried catfish instead of cooking. But then part of me felt slightly guilty...like how does eating out constitute any form of a fast!?! For us, eating out is a treat no matter what's on the menu. So this year I'm going to make an attempt to try some fun new meat-free recipes. I found this website with tons of good recipes to attempt. I'm sure there are many more site out there (and books too!), but just thought I'd share one for those of you looking for the same Friday food requirement. Happy Lent to everyone! (including any non-Catholics...preparing for Easter is such a wonderful time!) (and yes, I'm sure I'll have fried catfish at least once this Lenten Season!!! So yummy!!!)

Not Quite as Planned...

I am such a control freak. If something has the propensity to be planned, I plan it. If it can be organized, I organize it. (or at least attempt to...) I like the feeling of being in control and knowing what's around the corner. I'm not big on surprises. Though most of the surprises in my life have been pleasant, I suppose.

This past week was a total detriment to my controlling ways. The little guys and I travelled to Houston last Monday for what was supposed to be a quick three day trip. Just a visit to Kolbe's Shriners doctor for a check-up, plus a little visit with Pinkie and Pa for the boys. Plus, it got us out of the house so Mark could study for his Internal Medicine exam scheduled for Thursday morning. Early on, we planned to arrive in Houston on Monday and leave on Thursday. Since we fly stand-by on my dad's passes, we're kind of at the mercy of the airlines as to when we can and can't fly. Before we left Lubbock, Friday was already looking full so we set Thursday to be our return date.

After making it safely to Houston on Monday, we enjoyed a relaxing day on Tuesday, had a wonderful appointment at Shriners and a mini-birthday party for Reagan on Wednesday, and were packed up and ready to leave on Thursday morning. Now before we get any farther, let me remind you that my parents' house is roughly an hour away from the airport. And considering you have to be at the airport an hour before the flight, that means we have to leave the house two hours prior to departure. After arriving at the airport early Thursday morning with my dad, we were glad to hear that our flight was slightly delayed since we too were running late. Shortly after arriving at the gate, we received the thrilling news that all flights through Dallas were cancelled until at least 2:00pm. Since almost all of the flights to Lubbock go through Dallas, we were doomed. Defeated, we headed home.

As the day progressed, we discovered that all the flights to Dallas ended up being cancelled, thanks to the twelve inches of snow Dallas received. I was bound and determined not to let this set back throw off my plans to get home no later than Friday. After all, it was a rare three day weekend for Mark (Fri, Sat, Sun) as it was the weekend between two rotations. The perfect time for us to spend as a family! No studying, no paper writing, no patient logging allowed!

For Friday, our only option was to attempt a flight that took off at 7:25am and was scheduled to go through Austin instead of Dallas. After waking up at 4:30am to get ready and head to the airport, we were thrilled that we actually made it on time. As the elevator door opened to the Southwest check in area, we were instantly taken aback. No fewer than 250 people stood in the endless line waiting to get a ticket. I think it's safe to say that the majority of these poor souls were ones who got booted from their flights to Dallas the previous day. With just an hour to go before our flight took off, there was no way we'd make it to the front of this line and then through the equally long security line before take off. We didn't even bother staying to give it a shot. Trip two: busted.

As soon as we got back to my parents' house, I quickly checked the flights for Saturday before calling Mark with the bad news. I just about had a nervous break down when I discovered that there was literally no way we'd get back to Lubbock on Saturday either. With just a few flights going to Lubbock on the weekends and all the cancellations, there was absolutely no space for stand-bys. Not to mention the three-day, Valentine's weekend for travellers. Sunday morning would be our best shot. I was devastated.

It wasn't so much that I didn't want to be at my parents'. I love their home, love spending time with them, and love any chance the boys can get to be around them. It was more so that my plans for the weekend with our little family were crushed. I had it in my mind that things were going to go a certain way. I had it planned to a T. Instead, while we hung out in Houston, Mark got to hang out here in Lubbock. By himself. Whenever we're here, it kills him that he can't spend time with us because of studying and work. Then when he can spend time with us, we're not even here! Grrrr!!!

But I suppose, like all things, God has his ways which are far, far greater than mine. He always manages to show me why He is in control and not me. When we finally made it home on Sunday, I had a wonderful "surprise" (ok, I knew about it, but I was still so excited to see it!) waiting for me. On Saturday, Mark, my cousin-in-law Joe (is that a term? my cousin's husband who also happens to be my sister-in-law's brother....don't ask...), and his father Mr. Bergman spent ALL day creating a look-through window from our kitchen in to our family room-- something I've dreamed of having since I bought this house almost six years ago. I'm so thrilled by it that I will be devoting an entire post to it's greatness as soon as Mark finishes the last coat of paint. (yes, I keep getting the itch to finish it myself while he's at work but I'm trying to work on the whole control thing...)

Like I was saying before I got distracted by my awesome window, it's a good thing that God's in control. While, yes, life would be so much easier if everything went the way I designed it, it wouldn't be nearly as beautiful. After all, if everything went the way I designed it, we wouldn't be just months away from Mark finishing P.A. School, we wouldn't have been exposed to some amazing people like all of Kolbe's doctors, and we wouldn't have a sweet little dumpling sleeping in the other room named Reagan. All things that made up reasons for this whole crazy Houston trip in the first place! Under His control, life will always go "as planned."

Three Thought Thursday: Episode 6

1. I had a lot of fun watching the Super Bowl Sunday night. For once, I actually had a team I was cheering for and was thrilled when the Saints won! Mark's high school classmate and football team member plays for the Saints (#85, David Thomas) so we had to cheer for them! Yea, Saints!

But more so than cheering for the Saints, I was cheering for the Pro-Life Movement and the victory we had Sunday night. Unless you live under a rock, I'm sure you heard something about the "controversial" Focus on the Family ad that would be airing during the Super Bowl in the weeks leading up to the big game. Countless Pro-Choice groups across the country were completely up in arms over this supposed Pro-Life commercial starring Tim Tebow and his mother. From spots on the evening news to articles in numerous newspapers (it was front page of The Lubbock Avalanche Journal on Sunday morning...), there was some media supporting it, but mainly protesting it's running during the Super Bowl. The article in Lubbock's paper included quotes from Lubbock Pro-Choicers commenting on how they were essentially appalled that Focus on the Family was willing to drop an estimated $2.5 million on this ad when there were so many other "far more important issues" in the nation. Uh, hello!!! Another lady said she thought it was "crass" for them to "make light" of such a complex issue by putting it in a 30 second ad....

Did you see the controversial commercial??? Without all of the media attention leading up to the Super Bowl, there is no way I would have ever known that this commercial had anything to do with the Pro-Life Movement. Pam Tebow mentions, "He almost didn't make it into this world." Other than that, there was absolutely no reference to his birth, a recommendation given to her to abort the pregnancy, or anything else relating to abortion whatsoever. I loved it!

On Monday morning, I happened to turn on the TV to see what the unpredictable Lubbock weather would be doing that day and happened to catch a clip on Good Morning, America that was reviewing which Super Bowl ads were successes and which were failures. The woman doing the review mentioned that because of all the Pro-Choice protesting, the $2.5 million investment by Focus on the Family was worth far, far more than that, considering all the attention the ad received. I hate to have such a snooty attitude but I couldn't help but think ha, ha, ha! A movie line from a favorite childhood movie of mine, Major Payne, also came in to my head...One: Don't you feel dumb... Ok, ok, I know that's not the right attitude to have. Honestly though, I'm just marvelling at how God stepped in on this one and took the leap of faith that Focus on the Family chose to make and turned it in to something really special that gave tons of publicity to a cause that is so important to me. If you missed the ad, you can check it out on YouTube and I encourage you to go to the Focus on the Family website (www.focusonthefamily.com) and listen to the Tebow Family's full story about the creation of their awesome son.

"The thief comes only to kill, steal, and destroy. I have come that they may have life and have it more abundantly." - John 10:10

2. In the winter months, I love things that have a slightly nostalgic feel. Like my red tea pot. Mark does not seem to be quite the fan of it that I am. For the first two years of our marriage, I somehow managed to convince him to allow me to keep it on the stove top for "decoration" whether in use or not. With the addition of kiddos who have lots of "stuff," the kitchen quickly became a complete clutter zone so my beloved tea pot got exiled to a cabinet. But in the winter time when I'm craving a nice mug of cocoa, I bust it out to boil my water. No mind that the microwave is just a few feet away and could get the job done much quicker. There's just something about the warm whistling sound when the water is ready that makes me feel all comfy and cozy. I usually leave it out on the stove top till the afternoon when I put it away before Mark gets home. Maybe one day I'll have a open, airy kitchen where a tea pot on the stove will be perfectly appropriate.

3. We celebrated Reagan's birthday with a little party held at Mark's mom's house last Saturday and I couldn't resist attempting some cute little cupcakes for my little cutie. While I wish I could claim to have created these all on my own genius, I would be completely fibbing if I did. I got the idea for the circus animal themed cupcakes from an adorable book my Aunt Mimi gave me a few weeks before Christmas called Hello, Cupcake!: Irresistibly Playful Creations Anyone Can Make. After receiving it, I flipped through and ear marked several adorable ideas I could see myself bringing to life. Without a reason to make cupcakes, the book just glared at me from my shelf of cookbooks in the laundry room each time I'd go in to do a load of wash. Reagan's party was the perfect excuse to give these a try and I certainly had a lot of fun making them. My faithful sous chef, Mark, helped me decorate the cupcakes the night before, despite his aching back from a long week of work. I think they came out great! I'm totally impressed with this fun cookbook and it's great, easy ideas for making darling cupcakes! They really are much easier than they look! ***My plan was to include a pic of the cupcakes, but I'm stuck here in Houston while my camera is in Lubbock. I was supposed to make it back today, but it looks like it will be at least tomorrow so I'll put one up whenever I make it home!

Three Thought Thursday: Episode 5

1. My baby is turning one next week. I don't like it. At all. I know, I know. He'll still be a baby. And my baby, at that. But there's just something about being one that makes him not as baby-ish as when he's not one. I certainly didn't feel this way with Kolbe. With him, I think we were so proud of all he had been through in his first year and just thrilled that he made it to one with such success, that it didn't matter quite as much. Plus, I was about five months pregnant with Reagan at Kolbe's first birthday, so there was the guarantee of another "baby" just a few months away. Kolbe had to be the big bro! I know that the day after Reagan's birthday will be pretty much the exact same as the day before (it's just a number, after all...), but it makes me sad. I want him to stay a baby forever. I guess the only consolation is that at least for the second year of life, I can still refer to his age in terms of months. (eighteen months, fifteen months...) Once they hit two, they're just two.

2. We got several inches of snow last week. And lots of ice too! It was so pretty, and though Lubbock is probably one of the least scenically attractive cities ever, it's so fun to live in a place where we have all four seasons. Hot summers, cool falls, fresh springs, and cold winters with enough snow to make it fun but not annoying. Especially with kiddos, the snow is a blast! The only thing I hate is the mess it causes during and after. Wet towels, piles of wet snow gear, messy footprints, tons of laundry...the snow has got to be the biggest chore of all forms of precipitation. Not to mention the fact that as soon as they're bundled up, they suddenly have to go pee. It's so worth it, though, to see that look of wonder on their faces!

3. Are you a crock pot cooker? I am. More so in the winter than the summer, 'cause it usually seems like crock pot food is more of the warm, comfort variety. The perks of the crock pot are numerous. Who doesn't love throwing a bunch of stuff in a pot and winding up with a yummy dinner hours later!?! No "cooking" required! The one thing I've always hated, though, is trying to clean that sucker afterward. With several hours of heat streaming in to bubbly contents, it makes for tons and tons of caked on goo along the sides of the pot. A while back I came across a coupon for Reynolds Slow Cooker Liners and decided that I'd have to give them a try. While yes, one of them leaked slightly, overall they've been an awesome addition to the paper goods cabinet at our house. Best of all, they fit all sizes of crock pots, so whether I'm making a roast for dinner or queso for a party, I can throw one on either of my crock pots and don't have to fret about having to clean it up later. Or let it soak on the counter overnight as globs of nasty cheese float to the top of the stagnant water. While not a necessity, they're a fun, appreciated splurge. Such a great invention! Now if only they'd make them in 8"x8" or 13"x9" pan sizes....