Lizette's Favorite Songs

(Before you hit play, scroll to the bottom of the page to turn off my playlist music)

"I Am a Child of God"

"Do As I'm Doing"




"Popcorn Popping"

Pudding Love

Homemade vanilla pudding. Oh, how I love you. You are scrumptious. I realize that I might be going overboard making 4 batches in 4 days and eating every last, yummy bite. But I cannot help myself. You are the last thing I think about before I go to bed and the first thing I think about when I wake up in the morning. (Okay, maybe I'm exaggerating, but not much!)

A pregnant woman is entitled to at least one craving, right? With Lizette it was bacon. With this baby it is homemade vanilla pudding. Who knows where these cravings come from, but should we really deny ourselves and our babies of these delectable treats? I think not. Batch #5 is chilling in the fridge as I write.

Looking forward to more pudding...

Doesn't look like much, but Yum-O!

Gone in about 1 minute...

So sad that there is no more pudding...

Time to make more!

In case you would like to try this delicious sweetness, the recipe can be found on page 132 of the Better Homes and Gardens cookbook. This is the version I use...I have it memorized:

3/4 cup sugar
3 Tablespoons cornstartch
3 cups milk
2 beaten eggs
1 Tbsp. butter
1-1/2 tsp. vanilla

Mix sugar, cornstarch and milk in medium saucepan. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened and bubbly, then cook for two more minutes. Remove from heat. Gradually add about a cup of the milk mixture to the beaten eggs. Add egg mixture back into saucepan. Cook and stir again over medium heat until almost bubbly, then turn down heat and cook and stir for two more minutes. Remove from heat. Add butter and vanilla and stir. Pour into serving cups. Cover the surface with plastic wrap and chill. (Whatever is leftover after pouring into serving cups can be easily devoured in about 30 seconds by taking a large spoon and shoveling it into your mouth as fast as possible.)

Nienie

I think in most people's lifetime, they come across a handful of people who truly touch their hearts. Besides parents, siblings, spouses, and dear friends, there are those we meet who in some special way make a difference in our lives. I have come across one of these special people in the past year and I have never even met her.

Her name is Stephanie Nielson.

I was introduced to her blog last year while visiting my family in Tennessee. My sister-in-law, Cara, relayed the tragic story of a plane crash that Stephanie and her husband were in last year. Stephanie suffered burns to over 80% of her body. Her husband also sustained burns (I think 20-30% of his body), and both could have easily perished in the accident.

Upon realizing that she was still in the burning plane, he went back for her and pulled her out, saving her life. After months and months of being in a coma and undergoing multiple surgeries, she woke up. She woke up to pain; to a completely different body and face; to hearing that she had a very long road of recovery ahead of her; to children who didn't recognize her. I can't even imagine...

She has taken on this trial with a strength that seems unattainable to me. She is now blogging again and continues to inspire so many with her courage, grace and beauty. She understands that our Heavenly Father loves each of us more than we can imagine and has a plan for all of us. She understands that this life is just a short moment in eternity. She understands that we should enjoy the simple things.

Yesterday, she hiked Y mountain in Provo, UT to commemorate the 1 year anniversary of her accident. Unbelievable.

Stephanie, I will probably never meet you. If I ever had the pleasure of meeting you, I would tell you that you have inspired and humbled me like no one else. Thank you for your words, your faith, your example, and for the beautiful person that you are.

The Saturday Morning Sleep In

Saturday mornings. Aren't they the best? I don't have as much of an appreciation for them now as when I was working, but I still love them. Usually there is no where in particular we have to be at any particular time. The entire day can be spent doing nothing or lots of things. As long as we're together, it really doesn't matter.

On those days when Lizette wakes up earlier than the typical Saturday morning wake up time, I'll let her come and sleep with us. (It's the only way she will go back to sleep!) She usually snuggles right up to Jeff's back and pushes him over so that he has like 6 inches of space left to sleep on. Poor guy. He needs the Saturday morning sleep in more than any of us, but he ends up literally getting pushed out of bed by our almost 3 year old.

These will be good memories someday.

Have a great Saturday!

This Week's Grocery Deals...

I apologize if anyone who follows my blog is getting tired of me blogging about my grocery deals! I realize...I am a little obsessed these days. I just never knew how much money you could save and I'm so excited about it. So, I have to share!

So, this weeks deals were great. I purchased what is pictured above, which includes:
9 Wishbone Salad Dressings
10 All Laundry Detergents (32 loads per container)
4 boxes of fruit snacks
4 Macaroni Grill pasta meals
2 boxes of Kix cereal
4 boxes of Honey Nut Cheerios
4 Dove deodorants
8 Skippy peanut butter (small containers)
9 Knorr pasta and rice sides
2 boxes of Fiber One bars
4 Suave body wash
6 Suave kids shampoo/detangler
4 Vaseline Lotion
4 packages of Bic pens

For an amazing $45.04. Plus, I get $15.00 off my next purchase. I think this was a pretty great deal! And all stuff with a long shelf life that we will definitely use. This was all purchased at Albertson's here in Boise.

Potty Party

We did it! Lizette is potty trained. Finally.

Back in May we tried the "Potty Training in a Day" method. The day of the training went great. She seemed to be catching on and getting into the whole idea. I was amazed at how well it worked. The next morning she woke up wanting nothing to do with going potty like a big girl. "I want to wear a diaper" was her response to my coaxing. What?!! After that entire day of talking nothing but potty and being so exhausted...and this was her response? How could this be? I thought about it and decided maybe she just got burned out after that intense potty boot camp. Or, maybe she wasn't as ready as I thought.

So, I knew we had a vacation coming up in about a month and vacation is no time to be in the middle of potty training. I decided to wait until we got back. But then it was me who needed some motivation. I was tired. Pregnant and tired. I needed motivation. That motivation came in dollar signs. $$$. I definitely didn't want to be paying to have two in diapers come October. And that was it.

I woke up Monday morning early. Said a long prayer asking for help. When Lizette woke up, we said a prayer together. (We pray a lot around here.) And we were off! I brushed the dust off the videos and books that had been sitting around for the past two months, and we had a scaled down version of the original "Potty Party".

The first two days were really tough. Lots of accidents and lots of false alarm trips to the bathroom. However, I was excited to see that she actually wanted to try this time. She didn't wake up the second day saying "I want to wear a diaper". I figured this was progress.

By day three, she was telling me when she had to go and only had one accident. And that was at the swimming pool where she was freaked out to use their bathroom.

By Thursday, she had done it all. #1, #2, she stayed dry all day, and even woke up in the night telling me she had to use the potty. Wow! I can't believe it was that easy. I'm thinking we are still in for at least a few accidents down the road, but I am so pleased that we have made it this far.

Most of all, I am so proud of my sweet little girl. I've been emotional this week just watching her transition into one more next phase of life.

Way to go Lizette!

Complaining

My lack of motivation to blog in these past few weeks has had me concerned. I love blogging and reading others' blogs. So I ask myself, "What is wrong with you, Jackie?" The lack of blogging can only be a symptom of a larger problem. Am I depressed? Stressed? What could it be?

I mean, I love my life. I have a wonderful husband. The sweetest daughter in the world. Another one on the way. We have our health, great family, great friends, a great home to live in. What else could a girl ask for. So why can I not summon up the motivation to blog when there are so many good things to blog about.

Hmmm........

I think I might have an answer to this question.

I'M PREGNANT! And not enjoying it much at the moment. My hormones are out of whack. I'm cranky. My sciatic nerve is giving me fits to the point where it's painful to walk most of the time. Getting ready for the day feels like running a marathon. When I stand up I can't see my toes. I can't remember what I did yesterday (well, that's normal for me, but still...). Need I say more?

Well, I thought venting all of that would make me feel better, but I don't. I guess complaining doesn't really help.

Hmmm....what to do?

Maybe I should count my blessings and be grateful that I have the opportunity to feel this way if it means bringing another beautiful child into the world. Maybe I need a bit of an attitude adjustment. Maybe I need to remember that the world doesn't revolve around me and my problems. Maybe I should keep in mind that I will feel much better soon. Okay. I can do this.

Did I mention hemorrhoids? Okay, never mind. I'm counting my blessings.

(I promise...I'm really not going off the deep end here. Just expressing a pregnant woman's complaints.)

:)

I'll blog about something much more pleasant tomorrow. I'm off to adjust my attitude.

Good night.