Funnies from Mr. Cole

Lately, Cole has been cracking me up! Here are just a few of the funny things he has popped off with....

Cole turns on Rugrats.
Mom: "Cole, do you like this show?"
Cole: "No, I'm too big for it, but your baby will like it"
I sit, somewhat amazed that he was thinking about the baby he can't even see yet...covered up with an afghan BTW.
Cole: "Well Mom, move that blanket so he can see it!" (quite frustrated that I wouldn't have thought of that)

Cole: "Mom, if you would jump on the trampoline, I think it would make that baby come out sooner"
Mom: "Oh Cole, if it were only that easy..:)"

Cole: "Mom, is it going to hurt when the baby comes out"
Mom: "Well, it might a little, but it's OK - the Dr will take good care of Mommy"
Cole: "Well, it looks like your belly is going to P-O-P!"
Wonder what he will think when he sees me in 4 more months!

Father's Day

Every year we go to the St. Louis Zoo on Father's Day. It's been a favorite place of my Dad's his whole life, and, Jason enjoys taking Cole too. When I saw the forecast for Sunday, I (reluctantly) canceled our Zoo trip & opted for a cookout & swimming at our house instead. I just didn't think this pregnant Mama could take that heat! Well, it turned out to be the best Father's Day I can remember :)

The picture in the pool is Cole & my Dad, and, of course there is my cute hubby :)

We can now prove...

that Cole is 6 months old....via the scrapbook :) I have worked the last two days to catch his scrapbooks up to 6 months. I know - it's completely ridiculous that I'm this far behind. So..we have an entire album for 0-6 months finished, and, I'm 3 pages into our 7-12 month book. After 12 months, I'm planning to just cover events in his life rather than 1-2 pages per month...I'm so far behind!

Great Summer - "2 for the effort" Meals!

This is one of our favorite summer meals! And, there is enough meat when you cook it for the 2nd Meal as well!

Southwestern Chicken Layered Salad (Betty Crocker Recipe)
Chopped Romaine Lettuce
1 Rotisserie Chicken
1 can (11 oz) Southwestern Style Corn, drained, liquid reserved (Aldi's does have this off & on, otherwise, you can get Green Giant Brand at Walmart for sure)
2 Tbsp. Taco Seasoning Mix
1/2 C. Shredded Mexican Cheese
1/4. C. Ranch Dressing
1/4 C. French Dressing
Corn Chips (crushed)
Salsa

Arrange Lettuce on platter.
Shred Chicken, and, place in skillet with liquid reserved from corn & extra water (few tablespoons). Sprinkle with taco seasoning mix. Cook over medium heat 2 to 3 minutes, stirring constantly, until blended & thoroughly heated.
Arrange Chicken mix over lettuce. Sprinkle with Cheese & Corn. Drizzle with dressings; top with corn chips & garnish with Salsa.

Loaded Chicken Nachos (a Jenny original!)
Tortilla Chips
Seasoned Chicken Meat (from recipe #1)
Refried Beans (optional)
Cheese (nacho cheese, shredded cheese, or mexican shredded cheese)
Onions & Peppers (optional)

Layer all the above on a baking pan, heat in oven at 350 until cheese is melted & all is hot.

Remove from oven & top with Salsa, Sour Cream, & Guacamole (or anything else you like on your nachos)

Fresh Apple Cake with Carmel Glaze

Last night I made this cake, it was AMAZING! I'm sure it was created for a fall recipe (I could easily pair it with a nice bowl of hot soup & homemade bread and have an excellent meal!), but it was also a wonderful summer treat...especially with the scoop of vanilla ice cream on top!

Cake:
1/4 C. Cinnamon-Sugar Mix
4 Apples, chopped small
3 Eggs
1 C. Vegetable Oil
2 C. Flour
2 C. Sugar
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon

Glaze:
2 Tbsp. Butter
1/2 C. brown sugar
2 Tbsp. Milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Grease a bundt or tube pan & coat with cinnamon-sugar mixture. (I didn't have a these pans, so I used a square cake pan and it turned out great)
Mix apples, eggs & oil with an electric mixer (apples will stay in tact). Add Flour, sugar, baking soda & cinnamon - mix well.
Pour into pan & bake about 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. (mine was 1 hour exactly)
Allow cake to rest in pain for about 10 minutes; then invert onto a cake plate.
Prepare Glaze: combine butter, brown sugar & milk in a saucepan. Bring to boil and cook for 1 minute. Pour over cake.
Allow to cook before serving.

This cake isn't beautiful when it's baked in a square pan - I'm sure it's pretty in a bundt pan, but it tastes AMAZING. Enjoy!!

Transitions

Well, I think it's the first of many transitions.
Today, we are clearing out my home office - and, Cole is moving into that bigger room, and, leaving his bedroom for the baby nursery.
Cole is excited, Jason is frustrated (I have A LOT of junk in my office) and I have mixed feelings. The office was always my "escape", and, now that will likely have to be the bathroom (behind locked door...because heaven knows if I don't lock it the boys just come on in!). But, at the same time, I'm excited to see Cole enjoy his bigger room - and, super excited to see the new baby's room begin to come together over the next couple of months :)
My OCD is kicking in though...Cole wanted to move quicker than I had planned so I haven't had a chance to paint or decorate yet. Guess Americana will have to work for my 4 year old, super-hero loving boy, for now. I'm sure I will be paint/decor shopping soon :)

Gotta get my scrapbook on!

So...I broke down tonight and pulled out ALL of my scrapbooking stuff. I figured I had better get started if I want to get Cole's book(s--yes, plural!) caught up before the new baby gets here. Needless to say my dining room table is overflowing, and, I can't even say how many pictures I have layed out. I would say I'm at least 20-30 pages behind..and, that's being conservative. The good news is I have TONS of supplies so I really have no excuse not to just get busy! I have a feeling these pages won't be quite as creative, but maybe just functional :)

Stay tuned for progress....

Has it been a month already?

Oh my, I looked at my blog today and realized that it's been a month (today) since I've posted. Wow, it didn't feel like that long!
I'm happy to report that I'm HEALTHY AGAIN! The baby has a strong heartbeat & I'm able to function normally again...PTL!!! I'm actually 15 weeks along right now, so things are moving right along :)
Cole & I have really been enjoying the last 3 weeks with he & I both home. Lots of swimming!! Unfortunately he has to start summer school tomorrow :( I have very mixed feelings about this. I just feel like he's been in school non-stop for so long now, and, he's so little. I hope for him that he likes it, but, if he doesn't than we may pull him out of the summer class.
I have a feeling this summer is going to fly by...so many things I want to do while home with Cole, and, really - it's already going by so fast!