Merry Christmas!

Hello again my old friend....
I know it's been a long time since I've updated this.
I'm hoping to get back into a routine of posting again after the new year.
Since I haven't been scrapbooking, I look at this as a place to share some memories and get them written down somewhere.
I'm thinking of everyone that reads this blog, and I'm pretty sure that all of you got a Christmas card and birth announcement from us.
But just in case....
Merry Christmas, and happy new year!

One Week Old

Our little sweetie girl is one week old today. She is proving to be a good little eater and a sleepy little toot. Smiling big and wide in her sleep, I wonder what she dreams of. We really have to work hard to keep her awake. It has been a challenge getting her day/night schedules switched. But it's going better now, and she is just getting up every 3-4 hours to eat.
Wyatt is still being super sweet and loving towards her...so much more than we could have asked for. He is such a wonderful big brother. And speaking of big...He is so huge now. I know he's not any bigger than he was last week, but he just seems so big to me now. I've heard other parents say that, but never understood it...till now.

Allegra Beth

Our newest addition, Allegra Beth was born yesterday, November 17 @ 12:48 PM. She was 8lbs 1.5oz...20 inches long. She is sweet as can be and her own little person. We are having fun finding the ways that she is like and different from her big brother.


I know it's been a long time since I've posted anything, and honestly, I don't know when I'll get back into a habit of doing it again.
But, I just wanted to share some pictures of our new little princess.

I'm pretty proud of myself...

....I finished the quilt top.

I'm taking a "sick day" today.
Ryan is playing in a softball tournament and Wyatt is with Babu & Papa. But, yesterday, in the midst of getting sick, I got the backing put together. Ryan kept my appointment with the quilter that was referred to me by a friend on Facebook. So, it's in her capable hands and should be finished before Allegra makes debut!
Yay.
Now I just have to decide if I'm going to have her bind it too, or if I'm gonna tackle that myself. It doesn't look that hard, I'm just running out of time!

Dear God....

So, once in a while Wyatt will get a little bit of a chip on his shoulder. He will say or do something that he know's is naughty just to get a rise out of us. His bed time routine usually goes a little something like this: a few books and then mommy or daddy lay down with him, pray for our loved ones, and then finish up with song. Well, in the midst of the bed time routine, he decides he wants to say something naughty - so out comes "Go away Jesus!" Well daddy tells him how naughty that is, and that he should want Jesus to be with us always because he loves us and protects us. So he must have felt bad because he says "I want to say sorry". So he tells Jesus that he's sorry and then says "I want to pray for Jesus". So daddy says "OK, I'll help you" and Wyatt says, "No, I want to do it by myself". "OK, go ahead". "Dear God, thank you for Jesus. Thank you for his prostate. In Jesus name, amen". We've been praying for Papa Dan (who was having prostate issues).

by daddy

"Chick" update

I've been, "nose to the grindstone" every day this week, during naptime, working on the pinwheels for Allegra's Chubby Chick quilt. I officially finished the chicks this weekend, and I know you were waiting with baited breath, but I decided to go ahead and put on buttons for the eyes. I hemmed and hawed for a very long time, but then I just decided that there was really no substitute. So, to make it safe, I bought a heavy duty, high quality thread and sewed those puppies on there so tight that I don't think I could get them off. Of course, Ryan said that in order to really test it, I'd have to gnaw at it for about 10 minutes.

I'm a little over halfway done with the pinwheels. After that, the next step are all the borders (there are 3).
FYI...That's my belly labeled "Allegra". Ryan said he didn't know!

Be Still My Heart...

I'm looking forward to having sweet little baby things around the house again! This week, a package came in the mail from Dave & Carolyn. Are these not the most adorable things you've ever seen? Honestly. So stinkin' cute, and the softest leather you've ever laid your hands on.

Thanks again guys...you made my day!!

Back On The Market

Monday, I spent all day cleaning and taking pictures for the real estate listing. I thought I'd share some of these with you as I'm kinda proud of the job that we (we is used pretty loosely as I didn't really do much of the work) did on this house.

For the before's you really need "smell-a-vision"

But this room is now Wyatt's bedroom!

Cool huh???

Wanna see some more?

"The Bathroom"

Pictures just don't do how structurally unsafe this room was, I mean, these people were one potty break away from falling through the floor. And I mean that very literally, no exaggerations. In fact, we think they may have been going in their motor home or something...there is just no way.

Anyway, it's pretty narrow, which makes it hard to take pictures of, plus the fact that for the listing it had to be a horizontal picture.

"The Dining Room"

And isn't that desk adorable? I just love it so much!

"The Kitchen"

I wish I had better "before" pictures of this kitchen. Honestly, I really don't think I remember exactly how this kitchen was. I know that we have video of it somewhere...I should dig it up and watch. But, again, if only there was "smell-a-vision", and these cabinets were 1000 times worse than they look, with old food and flies buzzing everywhere.

"The Laundry Room"

This is the room that Ryan was feverishly working to build for me before we moved in. Well, it didn't get done before we moved in but after the move, a week long vacation, Wyatt being sick, me being sick, and Grammy (Ryan's 88 yr old grandma) doing all of our laundry TWICE, it is now in working order. It's not finished yet, we still have baseboards and shelves to put up. The laundry is in the basement which before this room was open to the dank, dark, dirty, smelly old unfinished basement. Now we have a clean place to take our laundry and not a concrete floor. It's going to be so cute when we get it done....he did such a good job.

And this gem...this my friends, is our bedroom. Unfortunately it's been pretty shy lately and un-photogenic, but after a few more touches, it should be ready for it's "after".

BUT, rest assured, the Pepto Bismal pink is gone, that wretched carpet is gone, rusty heater...GONE, and cigarette stained ceiling and walls....GONE.

So, while we have re-listed this back on the market, this little house is really getting comfortable. I don't know what God has in store for us, but if he decides to keep us here, now I know that we'll be able to make it work. It's going to be a challenge and take some creativity to find places for all of the things that come with having a baby in the house, but we will.

Of all the things I could be blogging....

...has anyone checked out the new Jay Leno show? We've tuned in a couple of times and last night he had a couple of goofballs on that tickled my funny bone. I think it brought me back to my high school days of memorizing Billy Madison and Tommy Boy word for word. I was thinking it...really I was, but Ryan looked at me last night as we were laughing and said, "this reminds me of Dave Johnston". I laughed because I was thinking the exact same thing...so here is some insight into the chemistry of my sense of humor. This is so weird, but it totally cracked me up and took me back....



Happy Thursday!

New Hair Doo...

My hair has been pleading with me to cut it for some time now. My problems is that I wait until I can't stand it another second and make an appointment with the first stylist that's available.

I've been wanting to chop it all off again, but have been looking for just the right style. Yesterday, I found it...I couldn't wait a day longer. So armed with all the pictures that Pioneer Woman supplied, I made an appointment at Toni & Guy and headed on out. My stylist was a cute little young lady. Come to find out she'd only been working there since May and that was her first job...gulp. I do really like it, I just don't think she followed the pictures that I gave her very well. I think I might like it more if the back was a little bit shorter.

Ok, I realize that the girl in the sample picture probably has much thicker hair than mine. But I'm wondering if there is a certain product that I can put in it to help seperate it and make it look chunkier. So ladies with short hair...what do you use? She used some BedHead stuff on me yesterday and I wasn't too impressed with how it held up. The thing with me is that I have fine hair and alot of it...so it gets weighted down alot. The thing that made me go marching into Toni & Guy immediately was this quote from the blog... "Brandi says this is a cinch to style. She just blow dries the sides straight—takes a couple of minutes—then she just lets the back do whatever it wants to do."

The back is what I hate to style...I can get the front looking pretty ok and just fizzle out on the back. To be honest, I haven't even tried to style this myself yet, but I can tell that by how long she left the back, it's not gonna be like Brandi's.

So I thought I'd share some pictures and take any styling hints or product advice that y'all might have. (I'm really not fishing for compliments here...I need help!!)

My pictures were taken from the webcam on my computer, Brandi's pictures were taken by PW. Nuff said.

But you get the point.

By the way, did I mention that this haircut took almost 2 HOURS?

Wasn't It Just Yesterday???

My friend Jackie's baby girl, Natalie, turned 1 year old today. It seems like it was just yesterday that I was taking pictures at the hospital for them.

And it WAS just yesterday that I was over at their house taking pictures to mark her first year. Unfortunately I wasn't on top of my game. Sheesh...halfway through our little photoshoot I realized that I had my ISO turned all the way up to 1600. That makes the pictures really grainy. And my flash was almost out of batteries. Miss Nat has just learned to walk and really wanted to show off her new skills. And on top of that Wyatt and Luke were wreaking havoc... (they turned the hose on outside and managed to spray it through the kitchen window spraying the ceiling and richocheting onto the counter and the floor) AHHHHHHH!!! Anyway, all that to say "Jackie, I really really want a do-over" But after looking through the pictures these were a few that I liked...

So,

Happy Birthday to you....

Happy Birthday to you...

Happy Birthday Dear Natalie...

Happy Birthday to you....

....And MANY MORE!!!

In His arms

I didn't want to have to do this post...but I need to do an update on Brielle Grace.
I received the following e-mail from Bonnie:
Hello again dear friends and family,

First of all, I want to thank all of you for your tremendous support and continual prayer. It has been a tough week, but we now know God's perfect will. It's hard to understand, but beautiful Brielle Grace Lackey went home to be with Jesus today, just before 6pm. Ike and Kristie are going to need your prayers to get through losing their little girl. Thanks be to God for the precious 22 days spent with her.

Resting In His Arms,

Bonnie

I've been sitting here pouring over the guestbook at caringbridge.org. 22 days. It just doesn't seem fair. I know there is a plan in all of this, I know that there are all kinds of bible verses to back that up. Our hearts are broken for them, and I can't even begin to imagine the pain. I pray for comfort and healing for their hearts.
So many miracles in 22 days, so many lives touched. And the ultimate healing even though it was not what we all hoped for.

*Updated* Baby Brielle (A Prayer Request)

*Urgent Update Letter*
Hello friends and family,

We just received a call from my father-in-law, who is at the hospital with Brielle now. Apparently, the team is in emergency mode with Brielle due to air bubble in her left lung (not sure if they are in the right). Please continue to pray for healing of the deflated left lung. Also, please pray for wisdom and understanding for the doctors and their team as they work on Brielle. Thankfully, her heart has still been doing well (Praising God!).

Thank you all again and again for your continued love, support and prayer. We all truly appreciate our brothers and sisters in Christ.

In Him,
Bonnie

I got the following e-mail from a good friend of mine yesterday (I've been waiting for permission to share this information on my blog and it came this afternoon):

Hello friends and family,

I am writing to you with a heavy and prayerful heart. Our niece, Brielle Grace Lackey, has been fighting for her life since she was born on August 8^th. As it is, she is already a miracle baby. Josh’s brother and his wife had tried for over 6 years to have a baby. Finally, they were blessed with Brielle, who has a heart problem. She underwent surgery for her heart and adjacent arteries and week and half ago. Since then, she has had a number of complications, the most recent being internal bleeding. An ECMO machine has been helping Brielle’s heart pump. The doctors now believe that this machine may be contributing to the excessive bleeding. A second “test” to see how well Brielle’s heart will pump on its own had been scheduled for tomorrow morning. Because of the bleeding, they have decided to take her off of the machine completely and hope that her heart will be strong enough to survive on its own.

Please, please pray for Brielle. Pray that her heart will be strong enough to “work” on its own, so that she may survive. Her left lung needs healing, as well. We are trusting that God is who He is. Brielle means “God is my strength.” She was named for that very reason.

If you would like to read updates on Brielle’s progress, go to CaringBridge.org. Click on visit and type in briellelackey. The password is babybrielle. My brother-in-law, Ike, has been writing updates in the journal. You can also leave some words of encouragement in the guestbook.

Thank you all for your prayer and support. You are all important people in my life, and I thank God each day for you.

Trusting in Him,

Bonnie

Since this letter yesterday, I received the following update:

Hi everyone,

I just received an update on Brielle. Praise God! Her heart did well when removed from the ECMO machine. She was put back on, however, due to her left lung not inflating. The doctors are working on trying to repair it, so that it does not create back-pressure on the heart. The doctors said they were amazed that her heart was able to hold.

Please pray that the left lung will be work properly and that Brielle's heart can continue to hold. God is definitely giving her strength. Thank you all so incredibly much for your words of encouragement and for all of your prayers. God is working a miracle...

In His Arms,

Bonnie

Isn't she beautiful?

There isn't much more that I can add to this. I can hardly think about this without crying, I just can't imagine. Please join me in praying for this family!

Thanks guys!

Seven Years...and Still Going Strong

Seven years ago today....
This is what we were doing!

What can I say, it's been an adventure. I wouldn't have it any other way. I love you Ryan with all my heart.

BUT....I don't wanna go home!!!

We've been saying this all day today...but alas, all good things eventually must come to an end.
We're on the road right now. Just going through Pendleton. A full week of almost no technology...and I really didn't miss it.
Just wanted to share this one picture from the road...
This was taken with my 50mm lens NOT the telephoto. (that means that I was this close to this creature)

I guess if we have to come home, I'll be glad to get off that maxi pad table bed mattress and into my slightly more comfy bed. Even if it IS in Portland!

Chubby Chicks

So, amidst the chaos of this move, I've started Allegra's quilt. I'm trying not to notice the still packed boxes and suitcases and un-hung pictures. I'm still burned out from the move, so I'm trying to block it out of my mind.
I posted in May about picking out a pattern and some of the fabric, and I just wanted to share my recent progress with you. I'm trying to get all of the chicks ironed on so I can work on doing the blanket stitch on our vacation. I decided to hand stitch around them instead of sewing around them with the machine. My sewing machine just doesn't have any decorative stitches that I think I would be happy with. There are going to be a total of 25 of these little babies.
Wyatt has been taking unusually long naps this week (hallelujah) so I've been able to get quite a bit accomplished! Before this move, I could easily count the times he's slept 3 hours on one hand. Something about this house makes him sleep well I guess. Yay for mommy!
This bird is done except for his eye...the pattern calls for a button eye and I haven't decided if buttons are the way to go yet.
Anyway, I'm thrilled with the way they are coming out and thankful for the distraction.

We Lived To Tell About It...

So, I realize that I never posted my follow up recipes on the pork roasts...I have the pictures of some really delicious pulled pork sandwiches to post later. And the other roast, sadly, got lost in the shuffle and we threw it out on Saturday.

We moved this weekend. Do you remember this little find from "Google Street View"? Oh, this is a gem. This is where we live now....of course this is the before picture. The "cousin Eddy" motorhome is long gone, broken down old trucks are outta here, the dead Christmas wreath (that we pulled off in August)(mind you, this street view picture was taken at least 2 years prior to us taking possession, so that wreath could have been there for YEARS)...GONE, Christmas lights (that we pulled off in August)...GONE, and 40+ tons of junk (literally, in case you don't remember) GONE!!!
This is a post that I wrote last summer on our progress, and sometime soon I plan on doing a post with the final "after" pictures.
Ryan was working over here ever spare minute he had to build me a laundry room. The laundry is downstairs in an unfinished basement (where the prior tenents grew their marajuana) and I refuse to do laundry in a cold unfinished basement that smells like dirt. BUT, that meant that he wasn't at home to help me pack up the house. I've never moved with a rugrat before. A busy little rugrat at that. I had a few people offer to help me come pack up boxes, but moving from a big house to one that is less than half it's size...I needed to sort, purge, figure out what I wanted in storage and what I wanted to keep out. So, while I greatly appreciated the offers to help me pack up, I just felt that it was really only something that Ryan or I could do. I did, however, accept lots of help with Wyatt. My mom was over 2 full days last week (not leaving till at least 10pm) and also took him home with her on Friday which was one of our moving days. Ryan's mom was over after work to watch him and also took him home with her one night so I could do some work at "the little house". And then, Ryan's cousin Lynnann watched him on Saturday. Phew, so I had alot of help. (sidenote: if you want a good laugh, please click on that link to Lynnann's blog, it won't dissappoint)
Towards mid-week last week it was becoming apparent that we weren't going to have enough help for the move. People were dropping like flies. My brother Jeff tore his calf muscle and he was one of our "musclemanfurnituremovers" that we had lined up. My cousin and her hubby, Christine & Kevin, own a trucking company and offered to send us a box truck (w/ lift gate) and 2 guys to help us move on Friday. Wow, what a gift. So, we went to the title company that morning, signed our house away, and came back to the moving truck...I'm not kidding, it took them just a little over an hour. They had our washer and dryer, all of our furniture, and all of the boxes that I had packed up loaded and ready. What a blessing. I can't imagine how it would have gone without that truck and those guys. *shiver* I dont want to imagine.
Saturday, we had a crew of family out there again. Remember I was pretty much packing up by myself. So, while there was alot accomplished on Friday, there was still alot to do on Saturday. We buttoned things up and turned over the keys yesterday afternoon.
So, we left our spacious house of 1900+sq ft 3bd, 2ba w/ bonus room and A/C. In the middle of a heat wave, we wedged ourselves into this 720sq ft 2 bd, 1 ba with no A/C. The first night here was positively miserable, I need to be cool, and even though I took a cold shower right before bed and we had a fan blowing on us, full boar...it was miserable. Last night was much better, the house was cooled down considerably, and I was able to get some good sleep.
So, I'm sitting here at my new secretary desk from Ikea (I love this freaking thing)

The cabinet is an add-on to the desk so it sits right on top...When I unpack my camera, I'll have to take a picture of mine...so cute.
Anyway, so I'm sitting here at my new desk looking around at an almost unpacked kitchen, lots of boxes, pictures leaning against the wall, we live here now.
We are going to be putting it back on the market in less than a month. With baby on the way, this place is just too small for us. But there are some things to do before that, and a much needed vacation inbetween. Ah vacation...less than 2 weeks away.

Someday I'll get around to posting those pictures of my pulled pork sandwiches. They were tasty. And speaking of homemade food...I can't wait to assess my food situation and start making dinner here...if you are what you eat, then I'm a giant subway sandwich.

Coca-Cola Glazed Baby Back Ribs (But I made Pork Roast)

(Originally published in November 2008)
I made this dish tonight and took the time to take pictures as I went. Since I added the sidebar tracker, this post has received the most Google hits of any of my blog posts.
Like it says below, I buy a 3 pack of pork roasts. Later this week I will be posting the other ways I like to use the meat from this recipe. Make sure to reserve all liquid along with excess pork roasts... but for now here is how to make this...in pictures!

I served the first roast sliced with some of the juice poured over the top of it, and a side of corn on the cob!!

(Original Post from November 11, 2008, recipe below)
Ok here is my favorite new recipe. (sorry no pics this time, I'll add one next time I make this)
This is delish.
Before I start listing the ingredients, it looks like ALOT. But more than half of them are spices. I buy mostly all of my spices from Winco in the bulk section. I have been very successful in doing this. Alot of this you will probably have onhand anyway!

Coca-Cola Glazed Baby Back Ribs (I made Pork Roast)

Classic BBQ Rub:
2 Tbsp Smoked Paprika (I think mine is just regular)
2 Tbsp Kosher Salt
3 Tbsp Granulated Sugar
2 Tbsp Brown Sugar
1 Tbsp Ground Cumin
1 Tbsp Chili Powder
1 Tbsp Ground Black Pepper
1/2 Tbsp Cayenne Pepper (How do you accurately measure that without getting all technical?)
1 Tbsp Onion Powder
1 Tbsp Garlic Powder
1 Tbsp Celery Salt (I couldn't find Celery Salt so I used Celery Seed)
1 Tsp Oregano, Crushed


1 Cup Coca-Cola Classic
1/4 Cup Apple Cider Vinegar
1 1/2 Cups Firmly Packed Brown Sugar
2 Jalapeno peppers, chopped (you can substitute hotter or milder peppers here...I just added 2 extra jalapenos cuz I'm kinda crazy like that) *Note* the thing of Jalapenos is that it's a gamble every time. Sometimes they will burn your mouth right off, and other times they are as mild as can be. The last time I made this roast with 4 jalapenos, it had Ryan running for the bread.

3 Pounds Baby Back Pork Ribs (About 2 Racks)
I used a pack of 3 pork roasts from Winco. (ya, this is that yummy)


1. The day before, (I forgot this step both times I made this recipe, it wasn't the end of the world) mix rub ingredients together and completely coat ribs (or roast). Wrap loosely with foil and refrigerate overnight. (if you forget to do this step the day before like me, don't worry, just put the rub on and go to the next step)

2. The next afternoon, bring the cola, vinegar, brown sugar and chiles to a boil in a small saucepan over high heat; reduce the heat to med-low and simmer until syrupy, about 10 min or longer. (this will be syrupy, but not thick at all) decrease the heat to low and keep the sauce warms while the ribs cook)

Skip to the bottom if making a roast!
3. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place the ribs on a broiler pan and bake for 45 min, glazing the ribs occasionally with the cola mixture. Turn the ribs over and continue to cook for an additional 45 min or longer, glazing occasionally until the ribs are tender and the meat is starting to pull away from the bone.

4. Set the oven to broil. Liberally spoon half of the remaining glaze over the ribs and broil until glazed a deep mahogany brown, 5-7 min. Turn over; repeat with the remaining glaze, an additional 5-7 min. Serve immediately with lots of napkins.

5. You can also do step #4 on the grill.

If making a roast:
This is just what I did. I put some olive oil in the bottom of my dutch oven and seared the outside of the roast. (any variation of pan/pot would work for this) Then I took the syrup mixture and poured it in the dutch oven around the roast, and cooked in the oven at 300 degrees until roast got to 160 degrees. I don't see why you couldn't do this in a crockpot either.

This is one of the easiest recipes I've made in a long time. The ribs look a little more time intensive. But this roast is so yummy.
It's a must have to add to your menu plan.