Easter 2013

She loves being under the table!

Easter was so much fun for Augusta Kate this year--mainly because she didn't sleep her way through it! ;) But seriously, it was a great weekend filled with family. And Mommy had a four-day-weekend to cuddle with her girl, so I'm not complaining about that!

All ready to shop!

Friday was shopping and baseball! Augusta was such a trooper because it really was a long day for her. I also got her Easter Bunny pictures back and there were actually some good ones! I was so proud of her for not being scared like she was with Santa!

Saturday Chase's baseball games were rained out! So he got to come to the church egg hunt with us! It was Augusta's first time hunting eggs and she enjoyed it! Though once she had a few in her hands, she was content! (I think she got six eggs total!) The rest of the day was spent being lazy at home as the rain, rain, rain came down, down, down...(Reference to Winnie the Pooh) Then later that evening we went and dyed eggs as a family at Chase's parents. So much fun and Augusta even made her first egg!

Green Egg=Augusta's First Easter Egg--she drew the design! :) 

Sunday was Easter! Augusta awoke to find her Easter basket filled with goodies--even though she was most interested in her book! Then we got gussied up for church! Augusta decided she was not having sitting still though, so we ended up in the unattended nursery.

After church we headed to Chase's parents' house. His great-grandfather was there and we had food and did an egg hunt for all the girls inside the house. (It was just too nasty to hide the eggs outside!) Augusta's favorite part about the Easter Eggs was definitely trying to open them--and once she figured that out we were all done! Had to hide the candy!

Next we headed to one of Chase's Aunt's homes for more food and Easter celebrations with extended family. The girls had another indoor egg hunt. And though Augusta got plenty of eggs, she was delirious and over the hunting at this point! She was much more interested in playing with toys she found along the path to the eggs!

Family pic

She finally napped in the car and we headed to my parents where we finished our Easter celebrations! We planned to do another hunt for them, but cooking and socializing got in the way! Augusta did try her first corn on the cob, though! And she loved it! It was priceless watching her eat it!

Hope everyone else made some great Easter memories! And also took time to be thankful for our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. It is in his death and resurrection that we are forgiven & saved and will get to join our Father in heaven some day!

Playing under Mims' table

Mommy helping Augusta hunt eggs

Loving on her "Creepy Baby" at Gammie's house

With Chase's Great Grandfather, Pappaw

Spring Break

Breadsticks with lunch

It's Spring Break 2013!! Finally! As much as I love my job and my kiddos, I could not wait for this week at home to snuggle with my sweet girl and spend time with my husband! Even though his break will mainly consist of baseball games, we will be there to cheer him on when we can! Other than that our big plans include lazy days at the house with some shopping thrown in!

Peek-a-boo

First weekend of Spring Break was wonderful! Lots of family fun with both sets of grandparents. And just enough baseball and softball to satisfy us! I was also able to sneak in a movie date with the hubby. We went to see "Oz the Great and Powerful." It was fabulous! And Chase even liked it!

Hugs from Daddy

During the week we spent a day traveling around and shopping with Gammie and Pappy! (Guess they just can't go very long without seeing sweet Augusta!) Augusta and I also went to a consignment sale--got some great things! It's my favorite one to go to! :) We also had lunch out with a friend!

Too cool for you ;) 

We filled the rest of our time with baseball and playing outside--we got two really pretty days at the end of the break (80 degrees!) and Augusta was loving the outdoors! Wish we could say we filled our time doing family things, but sadly baseball took over the entire break for Chase.

Playing on her slide

We did her him to ourselves on Friday and again on Sunday. Friday he got a fishing outing and we relaxed and went to the park. Then we had a family dinner on the patio of a restaurant on town. It was so nice to be outdoors! Sunday was a day of rest (as it was meant to be) because we were all exhausted from the busy week!

Interesting ways my child watched TV--ignore the "bed head"

Loved the time off, but it just spoiled me for summer! It went way too fast! But at least, at the time this is being published anyway, there are less than two months left of school!

Mirrors are a girl's best friend

The world is her playground

"I can climb UP the slide!"

Riding the Workman with Daddy

Happy Valentine's Day

"We love because He first loved us."-- 1 John 4:19 (NIV)

"No more pictures, Mommy"

Guess the title gives it away, it's Valentine's Day! I'm blessed to have two special Valentines in my life--my wonderful husband and our beautiful daughter! I am so lucky to have them in my life, and to share in theirs. I love then so much!!

Chase got his Valentine's Day present early. He wanted an otterbox phone cover and I couldn't see me having it (I bought it about a month early) and then him breaking his phone when we had the protective case all along. But I couldn't let my love go without a gift on V-Day so I made him this sweet momento I saw on Pinterest, aka the place where all my good ideas come from!

Dating Anniversary, Engagement Anniversary, Wedding Anniversary

My sweet girl also got a special valentines surprise...well I'm not sure how much of a surprise it was since she picked them out, but at this age I think it was still a surprise. Anyway, she got a few new little people for her castle. She got Tiana and Rapunzel and wedding day Ariel and Prince Eric. She loved them, especially Ariel who is her favorite! (And mommy loves putting the princesses in the castle a d hearing them talk---shhhhh! It's a secret!)

Blurry, but playing with some of her new girls before going off to Gammie's

My valentines surprise came a little later when I came back to my classroom to find a huge bouquet of flowers on my table. Honestly, I didn't think my husband was going to send me flowers--I wasn't getting my hopes up. Though as I kept passing the office, full of bouquets from other deliveries, I was secretly hoping he would surprise me. And he did!! Just one of the reasons I'm so in love with him--his ability to still, even after nearly 10 years and a girl who it's hard to get things by, surprise me.

Tonight Chase is cooking us steaks and we'll have a family Valentines Day with our sweet girl. I couldn't think of a better way to spend it than with the people I love. Blessed girl over here! I hope everyone else's day was just as magical!

Fun at Gammie and Pappy's house!

Relaxing with Pablo to end V-Day

Wow...

Pretty baby playing outside on a beautiful January day--it was near 70!

So I'm glad my New Year's resolution wasn't to blog more because I am seriously horrible at it right now! (And to the few who read this don't expect it to get much better since this is the busy time of year for school-based SLPs!)

January dragged on, but it's finally given way to February! January's end brought my little sweetie turning 14 months! I cannot believe it--where has all the time gone?!? But seriously, I'm loving every minute of watching my sweet girl grow and change.

Stylin' in some of Aunt Lys's beads!

My favorite thing she's doing right now is shaking her finger at you! (I'm sure I won't love this for long!) She will sometimes say "no, no, no" or "don't, don't, don't" while she does it and I can't help but smile--it's adorbs! :)

We're also seeing more of her strong will coming out. She lets you know when she wants to go up stairs and play, and you had better understand this is not a suggested venue change. If not she'll bust out the pointing and I'm-not-getting-my-way tears, which of course all stop the instant you take down the gate blocking the stairs!

Gymnastics anyone?

But she still is the happiest baby, I have ever known. She loves to run and squeal. She also loves to laugh and give kisses and hugs! She's Mommy's little snuggie for sure! She lights up my world as well as everyone else's that she enters! She's also fearless...not sure how much of a good thing this is. She sure is a sparkler!

"I'm ready!"

This past weekend was the Super Bowl, and while I'd love to comment on everything involved, I spent the majority of it playing with Augusta and chasing her around. (Hey, what's better than playing with your little and burning calories at the same time?) We did go to a Super Bowl party and it was great to see our friends and visit, but honestly I could've cared less about the game! Maybe next year, right? Doubtful.

But I'll try to be a more consistent poster! And here's to keeping that up! :)

Playing in her princess castle with her favorite--Ariel!

"What was that?"

Pure love and joy--Love this shot!

Easy Meal Option

So, if you're a busy mom like me, you may find it hard (Let me rephrase that, impossible) to find time to cook supper. It seems like every time I head into the kitchen to do anything that involves me standing next to a counter, my little sweetie comes and wedges her way between me and that space. She pushes on my legs and then stares up at my with the biggest puppy-dog eyes. And on days when I'm feeling really determined, she may even turn on a few tears to try and tear me away from what I'm doing. And let's just face it, I'm a softie and it usually works.

But the other night, while the hubby was still out hunting, we were getting hungry and really didn't want to wait until he got home to cook something to eat. (We had done this a couple of nights before and it ended with me starving waiting for him and Augusta eating hours before). I decided to whip up breakfast casserole, easy enough, right?

It was, but Augusta was being tolerant of her mommy's cooking. This is also a meal that can be done in steps. You can do one thing and then walk away for a bit. Which is great for me and our life style right now.

And I know there are tons of recipes for breakfast casserole. Most are very similar, but this is mine and it is delicious. Our whole family loves it and it refrigerates well, so it is just as good re-heated the next morning for breakfast. I'm calling this a hearty breakfast casserole because it's meaty and definitely fills you up. IT's for those with hearty appetites.

Hearty Breakfast Casserole

Ingredients:

• 2 rolls of Jimmy Dean Sausage (We like regular, feel free to spice it up if you prefer)
• 2 packs of Pilsbury Original Crescent Rolls 
• 5 eggs
• Shredded Mild Cheddar Cheese

Directions:

• Preheat oven according to the crescent package (325 degrees F)
• In a baking dish, 9x13 for us, spread one tube of crescent rolls along the bottom. Set aside.
• In a skillet, brown the sausage. (May need to do one roll at a time bc seriously it is a lot of sausage) Set aside.
• In a separate skillet, scramble the five eggs. Once scrambled, add to the sausage and combine. 
• Spread the sausage/egg mixture evenly over the crescents in the pan. 
• Sprinkle cheese (amount to your liking) over the top of the mixture.
• Finally, add the remaining pack of crescents to cover the casserole. 
• Bake until the crescents on top of the casserole are golden brown. 

Enjoy! 

2013...so far...

Dr. appointment day--note the band-aids

So it's been awhile since I had a blog post, and seeing how its already 2013 I figured its about time!

This year has been amazing so far! We're only about a half month in and already we've had a "Christmas" (well late Christmas) get together with our closest friends, and also celebrated the birth of a very special little boy!

Turner Bradley Baughman joined the world this past Wednesday (a great day for babies if you ask me!) He is absolutely precious and his mommy and daddy are over the moon in love with him! I cannot wait to watch this little one grow up! Such a blessing!

Augusta is also 13 months old! I know, can you believe it?!? And yes, I'm one if those annoying moms who still counts her baby's age in months even though they are now technically a year old. I'm sorry, but there is a big difference in a baby that just turned one, and one that is about to be two! Anyway, back to my sweet girl!

She had her one-year old checkup earlier this month. She got all those fun shots...boo! And she cried the most that she has any time we've been! Poor baby broke her Mommy's heart!

She is now climbing everything! I mentioned she had mastered the coffee table. Well now she had also climbed onto the couch and her rocking horse unassisted! She also tries to climb others toys that aren't so much made for that, but hopefully that will stop soon. She has also started loving dress up! When we play in her room, she automatically goes to her accessories drawer and brings me the items she wants to put on. (Like sunglasses and headbands, she can do the jewelry herself). We have a little diva on our hands! And I love it! :)

I'm also starting Augusta's gymnastics training, lol! We've been practicing her "flip" or front roll. Of course this is done with Mommy's full support. But if I say, "Augusta, lets do your flip." She will automatically tuck her head down and get into the flip position. It's precious! Future Olympian!

2013 has been a blessing so far, and I know it will continue to be! Hope everyone has a blessed one!

Christmas Time

Merry Christmas, Y'all!

Well my most favorite time of the year has passed for 2012, the Christmas holiday season. We are so beyond blessed with friends and family to celebrate with that there is no shortage of get-togethers or people to visit! This year we spaced out our celebrations more than usual and it worked out great!

First we had a gathering with some of Chase's extended family. It's a big, fun group that has continued to grow over the years. We have three babies (including Augusta) on this side so that makes it all the more fun. There's lots of love to be shared in this group, and also lots of good food! Yum, yum, yum!

Augusta, Mommy, and Mims!

Three Beauties--absolutely adore them!

My favorites---hate its blurry!

 The following afternoon we did our gift exchange with Chase's immediate family. It's always fun to watch our nieces open their gifts, and this year was no exception. Lana's faces are always priceless. And Maddie and Augusta are starting to understand and enjoy it as well. It was perfect and no pressure was put on the babies as they opened. They were free to roam and come back and open gifts when ready, which is pretty much the way Augusta liked to do it this year! Her favorite gift here was probably her talking baby doll. (This girl is all about the babies!) Though as we got home and played, she has also enjoyed the portable princess CD player.

Two princessess sitting on their thrones

Me and my sweet girl!

Opening gifts with Mommy

 Christmas Eve was low-key at home. We did pop out to my parents for the traditional "Christmas Eve Gift." It's a tradition I haven't partaken in in many years, though it has lived on with my siblings. We also took our gifts for the next day and dropped them off since Christmas was predicted to be a wet one. When we arrived back at home, we were sure to sprinkle the Reindeer food and make cookies for Santa. Then it was off to bed to wait for his arrival!

Miss Independent was not happy with Mommy trying to help at this point!

Getting the hang of it...

Sprinkling Reindeer Food

Christmas Day was magical! With Augusta I feel like a little kid all over again! I couldn't wait to get her up and see her expression as she saw all her gifts! I actually woke up at 6 and laid awake until she awoke closer to 6:30. Then we came down stairs to find her presents from Santa. She was most excited with the Cinderella doll he left. Next we did stockings and our presents under the tree. I can't say Augusta was totally into it, but she did help unwrap some of the gifts. And she enjoyed playing with different things as we opened them for her. Mims and Paul-Paul also came over and brought some stocking goodies, and then it was off to Gammie and Pappy's house.

Augusta with her loot from Santa

Digging in her stocking

I'm telling you, all she needs is a baby doll!

 We opened presents with my parents and siblings, as we do every year. We also had our breakfast as we opened. This year Chase made 7-up biscuits that were super yummy! Mom gave Chase and I a coupon for two overnight babysitting sessions--subtle Gammie! ;) Again Augusta was spoiled with way too much! Her favorite thing here was probably her replacement "Pat the Bunny" book. It is by far her favorite book and she destroyed her first copy, so we're going to take extra good care of this one. Later we had a traditional Christmas dinner--love holiday food!!

Love!

Chase surprised by some of his gifts!

Augusta snuggled with Gammie while Pappy looks on

Family Pic!

 And I count this in the holiday season, although technically it's not. But my mom's birthday is the day after Christmas, so it's just something else we add to the celebrating. We had an awesome lamb roast for dinner. And for dessert I made my mom a cream cheese pound cake, from scratch! It was incredible! And it was my first time to make a pound cake, so I was super proud. Mom loved it too, and really that's all that matters!

First Pound Cake--Yummy!!

This Christmas our little family was just beyond anything I could imagine. We were showered with love and far too many gifts. God has truly blessed us this holiday season, and we couldn't ask for anything more! I hope everyone else had a wonderful holiday and remembered the true reason for the season. Thank you Lord for all the continued blessings in my life!