Sleeping through the night

Hudson is one week away from being seven months old and he is sleeping 12+ hours at night. I believe this is because he is now eating 3 meals a day of solid food and goes to bed with a full belly. He is on a great schedule, going bed around 7:30 and taking two naps during the day. I usually try and lay Trey down at the same time as Hudson's second nap. Which is glorious! I even occasionally sneak a nap in myself. Bruce has been working some pretty late nights, which keeps me up later if I want to spend any time with him during the week...which I do, but only at the cost of my precious sleep which I hold so dearly. I am used to being in bed by 10 and it has shifted to me being lucky if I'm in bed by 12. Those two hours are crucial!! So I am grateful when I can nap with the boys. Trey is still an amazing sleeper. He sleeps about 10-12 hours at night. If he naps it pushes his bed time to 9 or 10 which is super late and leaves hardly any mommy/daddy time. If he doesn't nap he's cranky by 7 so we put him to bed with Hudson. I can't decide which way to go, nap or no nap. That two hours of quiet time during the day is wonderful and helps me make it thru the day without going crazy. But I also love the time Bruce and I get to spend together at the end of the night by ourselves. It makes me feel like a wife and not just a mommy. Which I'd say is pretty important.

Life has adjusted to a normal pace somewhere along the way. It was pretty rough at first. Having two kids was NOT a piece of cake for the MacNeills. I think the thing that helps the most is Hudson being on a normal schedule and getting plenty of sleep. Duh! If I get sleep I am a happy person. If I don't get sleep, watch out because I'm liable to hurt someone. Even with Bruce gone on trips during the week, I feel like I am in much more control and can make thru the week with no problem. In the beginning I was scared to be alone with both boys. Now I am way more confident in my abilities. You live and learn, right?

Lets see... What else is new? Hudson is just starting to sit up on his own and stays up for a good while. He wants to crawl so badly but hasn't gotten up on all fours yet. He is so content. I can lay him on the floor with a couple of toys and he will entertain himself for forever. He loves his exercaucer but not for too too long. He loves to lay and roll and play on the floor the most. He and Trey are starting to play together. It is hilarious. Trey likes to lay on top of Hudson and make him laugh. Which Hudson loves. It's the beginning of all the rough housing I'm sure we have to look forward to. I am loving having two boys. They are such a joy. God surely knew what he was doing when he gave us these two.

Trey started a baseball skills camp about a month ago. It's a bit of a joke but he seems to love it and that's all that matters. This is his first structured activity so he had a hard time listening and following directions at first. He did much better this past week and I was proud of him. Not necessarily better at baseball, just better at listening. He is such a great little hitter and we pitch it to him at home. So he's not used to hitting with a tee. He'll have to learn if he wants to play though. They don't pitch it until they're older.

I want another one...

I want another one...those four little words and Bruce knows exactly what I'm talking about. He thinks I'm crazy. His response "There is nothing I want less in this whole world right now than another child, maybe that will change in 6 months, who knows." This makes me laugh and I expected nothing less from him. Two kids has been a big challenge and adjustment for both of us.

But...
Once we made it past the first few months that were some of the most difficult times ever as parents, a time when I don't know what I would have done without my husband, a time when we adjusted to having two little ones and working out the "tag team" system, a time when sleep deprivation had us on the verge of going crazy. I knew. I knew that even though I have loved Trey and every stage and phase that he's gone through (some not as fun as others) babies are the ultimate! The ultimate challenge, the ultimate love, the ultimate stage. And I have seen how fast it goes by. One minute you have this little dude that completely relies on you for everything, and the next moment you have a little dude that wants to do EVERYTHING for himself, or "meself" as Trey still says. I don't care if it's a girl or boy, all I know is that I don't want this to be the end of the baby phase for me.  I know, I know...Hudson is still very much a baby, and I am soaking it ALL in! but if you can say at 4 months when you are delusional and tired and things are as stressed out and as crazy as ever that you want another one, I think it's safe to say (I'm certifiably insane?) that I really want one.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

 

This is a recipe I came up with by combining 3-4 recipes I have found for Chicken Tortilla Soup. I made it this week and it was really good so I thought I'd share.

 

1 can (14.5 oz) chicken or veggie broth

2 cups water

1 (15 oz) can corn, drained

2 (15 oz) cans Rotel Original

3 chicken breasts cooked and shredded (my sis recommends using a rotissere chicken, especially if you are short on time.)

1 (15 oz) can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 (4 oz) can chopped green chiles

1 medium diced onion

1 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

1 bay leaf

(I have added 10 oz of enchilada sauce before, but I left it out this time)

 

This turns out pretty spicy. If you don't like spice, I recommend cutting out the chopped chiles, or maybe cut the rotel down to only 1 can, or use Rotel Mild. Or you could cut out the cayenne pepper. Also, you could add more water or broth.

 

Add all ingredients and cook on low for about 1 hour. Top with shredded cheese or tortilla strips if desired or any other garnish that sounds delish.

I served this with my mom's mexican cornbread and it was great! Maybe I'll add that recipe to the blog.



Chicken Cordon Bleu Pasta

Bruce has an obsession with Chicken Cordon Bleu so when I saw this recipe on Pinterest I had to try it. I got the recipe off of this blog. Below her blog were lots of notes and suggestions to try to make it better as her recipe seemed to be rather bland and plain. Here is MY recipe that has all the changes I made to make this a delicious meal. Note - it makes a huge portion. We had lots of leftovers for the next night. But being the fatties we are, it was gone in 2 nights. Please read my notes at the bottom as I explain some important instructions for this recipe.


12 oz Pasta (I used Ziti - you could use any fun shaped pasta)
3 Chicken Breasts, seasoned, cooked in a skillet, and cubed
1 cup Ham, cooked and cubed (I bought a package of pre-cooked cubed ham)
3 pieces of bacon cooked
1 cup Skim Milk
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
8 oz. Cream Cheese (softened)
2 Tbsp. Dried Minced Onion
1 1/2 cups Swiss Cheese, shredded
1/2 cup Colby/Jack cheese, shredded
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp Dijon mustard
Salt
Pepper
Cayenne Pepper
Cajun Seasoning
Garlic Powder
Parsley
1 cup Panko Crumbs
1/2 cup Butter, melted

The first thing I did was fry up the bacon. Next time I will add more bacon and maybe even leave out the ham. The ham did nothing for us, and we were wishing for more bacon.

Next, I cut up the chicken into small pieces and  tossed it with seasonings until completely covered. The seasonings I used were salt, pepper, Cayenne Pepper, Cajun seasoning, and garlic powder (and I would recommend putting the minced onion in with the chicken as well instead of adding it to the sauce later. It needed cooking a bit.) I'm not a measurer when it comes to seasoning, so I would just recommend using what seems right to you and your family. We like things spicy so I pumped up the Cajun seasoning and Cayenne Pepper just a tad. I fried the chicken in the same pan as the bacon using the bacon grease. OH yeah!

Start boiling your pasta to al dente -  make sure you don't overcook it.

When your chicken is finished cooking, add your ham and bacon and cook them together for 4-5 min.

Drain your pasta and add your meats to it, tossing to mix.

Next you make your sauce. I made it in the same pan I cooked the bacon/chicken in to make sure I got all those yummy seasonings. Start with your milk, heavy whipping cream then add your cream cheese and cook on medium heat stirring constantly until smooth. Add your Dijon mustard and nutmeg. Then I seasoned it with the same seasonings I used on the chicken to add flavor. YUM YUM YUM!!

When your sauce is heated through and smooth, add to your pasta and meats. Add Swiss and Colby/Jack cheeses mixing it all together thoroughly. Put in a 9 x 13 pan.

For my topping, I would have used Panko bread crumbs if I had them, but I didn't. I ended up putting some 3 cheese flat bread crouton thingies in the food processor to chop them up, making about a cup. Spread on top of pasta then pour a stick of melted butter on top. Cook in a 350 degree oven for 30 min.

I hope I explained things clearly. Feel free to ask any questions you have. And I would love comments if you try it out and find something you would change about it.


Enjoy!!!

Potato Soup on Crack

The soup in the beginning stages. No hamburger meat added yet.

 

 

We recently had some friends over and I wanted to try something new - so of course I hit up Pinterest. (Does anybody even use cookbooks anymore? I recently got mine out and had to dust them off!) This recipe was a big hit! The boys literally licked the crock pot clean. Today is another cold and bleary Saturday at home, full of family time and football, and Bruce has requested it again. If you want a link to the blog where I originally found it click here. She calls it Bacon Cheeseburger Soup. We call it Potato Soup on Crack. It's delicious!

 

1lb of lean ground beef

8 oz cream cheese

8 slices of bacon

32 oz Southern Style Hasbrowns

32 oz velveeta cheese (I use the lower fat one made with 2% milk)

32 oz chicken broth stock

small onion diced

 

 

Fry up the bacon and crumble it. Brown the hamburger meat (I always season my beef with garlic salt and Lawry's seasoning) Cut up the Velveeta and put it all in the crockpot with all the other ingredients, stir well. Cook on high for 4-5 hours, stirring occasionally. Hope you like it as much as we did!!

 

Finally A Good Day

Today was a better day. We needed a better day. Trey has been sick making things that much more hectic around here. After spending 3 hours at the clinic yesterday I didn't want to leave the house - and we didn't. We played all day. It was fun and stress free. We went outside to play on the deck because it was a beautiful day. (If you're wondering if it was cold enough for Trey's winter hat (lol) it probably wasn't. It was maybe in the 60s but I made Trey bundle up since he had a cough.) We played forever in Trey's pretend kitchen. He cooked me delicious cheeseburgers, hotdogs, and ice cream. We built a house out of Legos on his new play table. He really likes it, but really only gets into it if someone is playing with him. We wandered down to the basement in search of my keys to check the mail and ended up going ADD and cleaning the basement and garage. Trey had fun playing with all the toys we found cleaning up. After nap time when I enjoyed 2 new episodes of Duck Dynasty, I even managed to cook an amazingly delicious meal!! Outback's alice springs chicken. Thank you Pinterest. Here's the link if you're interested. Reccommended by Bruce for sure. http://debrapate.blogspot.com/2012/01/outback-steakhouse-alice-springs.html

I took some cute pics of our beautiful boys to remember the occasion.

Can you catch me mommy?

This was a fun game. "Don't take my picture!!"

Admiring his new "cool boots." He loves them.

Our kid is so beautiful

"Hold still, Trey!" Yeah right mom!

Can't catch me!

Hudson is sleeping and oblivious. Can't wait til they can play together.

Oh yeah, I totally posed this one.

Loves playing on his castle. So glad we brought it up on the deck.

How far can I go without falling?

He loves to play.



Little Hudson sleeping the day away

Trey version 2.5

It is hard to believe but Trey is officially 2.5 as of August 8. He is such an amazing kid. I couldn't be prouder of him. He is your typical 2 year old. Full of energy, always talking, obsessed with Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, a big-time love bug, extremely stubborn, and wants to do everything by himself! Mr. Independent!

My Loves!
Riding the carousel at Dulles Town Center

We have had such a fun summer! Bruce has been home for the majority of it and we've been spoiled having him around. We go to the pool as often as the weather will allow us (it's been extremely rainy/cloudy/thundery and the pool closes if it thunders) Trey LOVES the water and is completely fearless. He loves to jump in off the side (he even jumped off the diving board at Grandaddy's pool) or for us to throw him or flip him. He can't swim of course, he has to wear arm floaties, but he THINKS he can. It's terrifying. He will jump in without them on and just flail about until we lift him up and he just laughs and laughs. Apparently he thinks drowning is funny. Not sure how to handle this situation.

Jumping off the diving board at Grandaddy's pool

Cousins on the 4th of July

Trey is still an excellent sleeper - he just LOVES to sleep!! He's been sleeping in a toddler bed for quite a while now and he loves it. The transition was much easier than anticipated. He still sleeps with a pacifier. To be honest, we just haven't had the guts to take it away. I'm hoping it's gone by the time he turns 3. So, he sleeps about 12 hours at night and takes a 2 hour nap. I am SO blessed. It has especially been nice when I want to take a nap too. I hope he keeps this up when baby brother arrives. I'm going to need all the sleep I can get.

Just waking up from an epic nap!

He can be a picky eater at times. He eats veggies a good bit, loves asparagus and raw broccoli with ranch dressing, but will not even try fruit other than bananas. It's a mystery to me. His favorite foods haven't really changed, but he will try more new things for me and I am grateful. He really liked the chiken spaghetti and chicken casserole I made recently. I started making Mickey pancakes and cheese toast for breakfast (not at the same time ha!) and he loves those! Mickey cakes!! Chee toast!! He still will not drink milk well, but loves cereal and milk so that's good!


He is 37" tall and weighs about 30 lbs. He's still skinny and tall, so most pants are hard to fit. He's little in the waist and has long legs. I recently went to buy new jeans for the fall and the 2T at Children's were huge! Shorts are easier - he's still in a size 18 months hahaha but some 2T fit. However, I have to buy 3T pajamas and shirts. He's difficult to shop for. I'm sure I have many years of this ahead.

He has an adorable obsession with animals. It's what he loves to play with, read about, talk about. His favorite animal (for now) is the hippo. He has a couple of hippo toy figures that he never lets out of his sight, a hippo pillow pet, and hippo pajamas. Maybe he'll be a zoologist or a vet or something.

While Bruce went to Canada on his bi-annual canoe trip, Trey and I drove to Alabama. We had such a great time. He LOVES his cousins! Alissa, Lucas and Whitney were there. They play well together and are fun to watch.

Alissa and Lucas were like big brother and sister to Whitney and Trey.

Our family on the 4th of July

Playing on the trampoline at Maw Maw's house