Crosbi: 5 Months

It has been quite a month. Crosbi is growing and changing every day, but this month felt full of milestones. We have been so busy that I'm barely getting this post written before we enter Crosbi's sixth month. I could have sworn that I had already covered month five, but Todd was quick to point out that I hadn't. At least one of us is keeping track!

So before we officially cross the half-year mark (sigh), I'll give a quick recap on this past month.

Crosbi...

*You are definitely showing your personality and I love it. I have no doubt that you're going to keep me on my toes. You have just the right amount of spunk and it's so fun getting to really know you.
*Belly laughs have been filling the house. I don't think I have ever seen your dad beam the way he does when he makes you laugh. You laugh in the bathtub, when daddy sings to you, and today you laughed hysterically when I shook a cup with ice. You're funny.
*You're eating solids! So far you have had oatmeal, bananas and sweet potatoes. We'll introduce avocados soon. I'm hoping you're a foodie like me and your dad.
*You're sitting up on your own like a champ. I've even had a few people stop me in public to tell me how cute you are sitting on your own. You have conquered shopping carts and restaurant high chairs.

*You want to crawl so badly. As soon as you got a handle on sitting, you were bouncing forward. If you could just figure out what to do with your legs, you would be unstoppable. I'm not ready for you to be mobile!
*You have been extra cuddly this month. Lots of hugs and kisses for me and daddy.
*You finally like being outside. It took awhile. Maybe you just didn't like having to sit in your car seat? Now that you sit in your stroller like a big girl, going on walks has become much more fun. Especially when we meet friends to walk at the zoo. You love the zoo!

As hard as it is for me sometimes to see you change and grow, this month has been a lot of fun.

I love you, my sweet girl.
 

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This Weekend

It was a wonderful weekend for the Stepps. A jam-packed, holiday filled weekend and we soaked up every minute of it.

Saturday we had the privilege of dedicating our sweet girl to the Lord in a baby dedication ceremony at our church. We were sad not to have family in, one of the bummers of living away, but we were surrounded by friends who are like family as we promised to raise Crosbi in a Christian home, to teach her God's word and to live our lives as an example of what it means to have a relationship with Jesus.

Our pastor asked us to meditate on these words from Deuteronomy 6:6-7, and I really like The Message version:

Write these commandments that I've given you today on your hearts. Get them inside of you and then get them inside your children. Talk about them wherever you are, sitting at home or walking in the street; talk about them from the time you get up in the morning to when you fall into bed at night. Tie them on your hands and foreheads as a reminder; inscribe them on the doorposts of your homes and on your city gates.

 Get them inside of you and get them inside your children. Love that. Such great responsibility.

Sunday was Mother's Day and it has quickly become my favorite holiday. I think it's so special to me because it's a reminder that I have been called to be a mom. I have always enjoyed celebrating the moms in my life, but now that I am a mom myself, it has so much more meaning. I never would have thought that I would love being a mommy as much as I do. It is absolutely the best thing to ever happen to me, and now this little holiday is just another opportunity for me to praise God for blessing me with my precious girl.

To top off the weekend, Todd and I celebrated our 7 year anniversary yesterday. I can't believe seven years have gone by. I feel like we're just beginning our journey. No seven year itch in this house. I couldn't be more in love with my husband than I am today.

My heart is overflowing.

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Bath Time

Someone discovered how to splash this week.

Bath time just got a lot more fun.

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Pinterest: It's What's For Dinner

First of all, thank you ladies for your sweet comments on my last post. It was so great to "meet" April and find another great blog to add to my list. Christine encouraged me as always. It was her blog that inspired me to start writing back in 2007 when I was just learning what blogging was all about. Ashley was encouraged to start writing on her blog again as she anxiously awaits the birth of her little boy this summer, and this little blog has allowed me to get to know Todd's cousin Allison, whom I've yet to meet in person. I'm so glad our blogs let us keep in touch and I hope to finally meet her sooner than later!

While I'm giving a little blog love, I need to give a shout-out to Emily, a friend of mine who inspired this post. She has done a great job of blogging about the meals she has made from Pinterest. I know that I've pinned close to 100 recipes at this point, wondering if they're as good as they look, and Emily helps to take out the guess work. She rates the recipes, says what works and what didn't, which recipes need tweaking, etc. So, I thought I'd do the same.

Todd and I are really striving to eat healthier, but these recipes are in no way the healthiest ones on Pinterest. We've gone organic when it comes to milk and most fruits and veggies. Our beef is as organic as it comes (Todd helps butcher it himself!) and we're moving to free range chicken as well. But, we still sneak in easy, stress free recipes because we're trying to stay afloat most days, so no judging!

The photos below are borrowed except for one we managed to take ourselves.

Since I've made more than a dozen of the recipes I've pinned, I'll consider this post part one.

Crock Pot Chicken & Dumplings

Super easy recipe. It's made in a crock-pot start to finish. It doesn't get much easier than that. I like the fact that it doesn't need many ingredients, so it's a great go-to when I need to make something with ingredients I have on hand. I add a few more veggies than the recipe calls for. I think I doubled the carrots and I like to add peas, or some other veggie to round it out.


Crispy Cheddar Chicken

Not a bad entree, but I had a hard time getting the cheese to stick to the chicken. There has to be a better way. I think I liked the sauce better than the chicken itself. Not sure if I would make this again.

Rustic Pot Roast Pot Pie

Todd took this photo on his iPhone. To be honest, I tweaked this recipe so much it hardly resembled the original. Believe me, you don't want to stick to the original. I substituted the beer for beef broth and added a ton of veggies. Todd and I both love okra, so I added half a bag of frozen (thawed) okra and other frozen veggies. The recipe said to add potato flakes to the soup mixture to thicken it, but I would have needed to add half the box and I wasn't going for that, so no potato flakes for us. Instead I just added a little bit of cornstarch and strained the soup mixture before adding it to the pie crust. In the end, we both liked my adaptation. I would definitely make my very-tweaked version again.


Bite Sized Baked Brie

Yes. Loved everything about these. Todd's mom and I made these over Christmas and just thinking about them makes my mouth water. You really can't go wrong with Joy the Baker!

There you have it. I'll hopefully have part two ready very soon.

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