Some pictures and a couple of recipes

There's not really much to update tonight, but you know me...this will still end up being long. Someone I love dearly recently said to me of my blog, "You write well but you write A LOT." What can I say? :)

I have not been giving Benjamin formula, just nursing him for longer periods of time. He is already gaining more weight. I have the baby scale until Tuesday. He's already gained about five ounces in five days, so I'd say he's doing fine. :)

Tomorrow is my younger brother's birthday so we're all going out to eat. Should be fun. And yummy.

Speaking of yummy, Thanksgiving is Thursday!! I have two delicious and fattening recipes for you. You only *think* your green bean casserole is good. Try this one. The sausage balls recipe I use more at Christmas, but it's the season!

Not Your Grandma's Green Bean Casserole (I made up that title b/c it's a lot different. I actually found it in a random Ingles' grocery ad in 2003 and have cooked it every Thanksgiving and Christmas ever since!)

4 cans green beans, drained very well (I prefer Del Monte French Style, but you could use the cut ones, too.)
1 cup shredded parmesan (Not grated, but shredded)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
2 cups sour cream
2 cans French Fried Onions (You can just use one, but let's be honest: this is the best part of g.b. casserole!)
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper

Combine soup, sour cream, cheese, salt, and pepper. Fold in green beans (uncooked). Stir in one can of French Fried onions if you prefer to use lots. Then top the rest with the other can. (Or if you're just using one can, top it with that one.) Cover with foil in a 9x13 dish and bake at 350 for 35-45 minutes or until warm.

This recipe is actually doubled but fills a regular-sized baking dish just fine. If you're only cooking for a few people, you could probably half it. This is the only dish I was personally responsible for this year at Thanksgiving, and we had nine people. I made one on Thanksgiving and then made one the next day to eat with the leftovers. (It's so easy to assemble that I just made it fresh the next day; I don't think it would be great to make ahead of time b/c of the onions.) :) Warning: This dish is cheesy and fattening and creamy and delicious.

Sausage Balls (I know that at least down South everyone makes sausage balls and though I love them, most people's I've had are too hard and dry and the pieces of sausage are too big. I found this recipe a few years ago and it's much better than the standard one I used to use. I think it's the added water and that the sausage is broken up really small. Oh, and I don't overcook them.)

1 lb. sausage
3 cups Bisquick
4 cups shredded cheese
3/4 cup water

Brown sausage; drain and cool. Combine all ingredients. Roll into small balls. Place on lightly greased baking sheet. Bake at 400 for 11 minutes. Reheat at 350 for 20 minutes.

The key to getting these perfect is three things:

1. Break the sausage up super tiny after you cook it. We're talking itty bitty pieces here. I actually cook it normally and then after I drain it I put it in a big bowl and add my Bisquick. Then I spend forever with my hands in the sausage and Bisquick, breaking up the sausage into miniscule little pieces before adding the cheese and then the water.

2. Add all the ingredients and then the water. It should roll together well. If it's too sticky, add a little more Bisquick. If it won't roll, add some more water. The consistency has to be right.

3. Don't cook them too long!!! Things tend to harden when they're on the cooling rack. The sausage is already cooked, so you're not going to get sick if you take them out when they're not quite done and then they finish cooking on the rack.

PICTURE TIME!!! Sorry some of these first ones are grainy and blurry b/c they're pictures of pictures.

My parents' family Christmas card this year. Matthew and I are on the left. Andrew and Benjamin are pretty easy to spot. My younger brother Justin is standing in the back, and my older brother Michael and his wife Edie are on the right. Edie's daughters are Abbie (blue) and Ashlyn (gray). Davis is in front of Edie. Oh, and Michael and Edie's unborn baby is in utero. :) They find out the sex of the baby on December 3rd!!!



Ummm.....my siblings and me. This was Justin's idea. LOL They had all kinds of props in the room. He said, "You on the pony, Michael with the corn, and me coming out of the chimney." Hilarious!!!!!!!



My precious boys



The Amick family 2008

Today at church, Andrew's teacher said he didn't have any diapers in his bag so she had to use a Care Bears pull-up. There actually were three diapers in there, but she must've only looked in one of the pockets. But that's okay. It was worth the photo op. I have added it to my blackmail file.

My mom and me goofing off at the portrait place. I took this with her camera. It weighs about thirty pounds, so it was hard to get a good shot. :)

Andrew going in to give Uncle Justin a kiss.

Andrew eating with my family at Tres Amigos after the pictures. Matthew, Benjamin, and I went home. It's just easier not to go out to eat with a baby. Plus, it was nice and quiet at home with Andrew gone for awhile. This was actually on the day of our eight-year wedding anniversary (last Wednesday) so after both boys went to bed, Matthew went out and got us take out from Tres Amigos. Yummm....

I love this picture!!!

Sweet baby

These were taken back in October when we were at Vanderbilt.

This is Andrew and his horse Brownie in my mom's kitchen.

Bathtime at Namma's

Yampa's birthday ice cream

Blackmail photo #2 of this post. Angry tub demon

Entertaining a toddler is easy. You just need a laundry basket and some stuffed animals.

Here is Andrew in his Santa hat yesterday.

Woah. Blackmail for Matthew. Scary Daddy Santa

Matthew and Andrew hanging out at (and on) the table.

This last picture is of Andrew dancing during the movie "Polar Express." He is dancing to the song "Hot Chocolate." We have been listening to this soundtrack for several weeks and finally got out the movie. He really likes it. It is at our IMAX 3-D theater and I think we're going to go next week!! He will be so entranced! I think he's airborne in this picture!!!

Boo, hiss, Target!!

I'm sure most of you know by now that the "great" deal on the Britax carseats was, indeed, too good to be true. Target mispriced them. They were listed for $42.99 when they were supposed to have been $279.00. Ummm....yeah. I'm sorely disappointed but totally understand why Target doesn't want to take such a big hit. I read somewhere that over 22,000 of the carseats were ordered. I'm no mathematician, but that's some serious dough.

We've been having some weight-gain issues with Benjamin. I took him for a weight check at the doctor's office and he had only gained three ounces in two weeks. He was only up to 13 lbs., 6 oz. He's almost seven months old and was 8-6 at birth. His heart surgery is behind him, so he should be gaining more. I rented a baby scale at the hospital and am now weighing him to see how much he is getting from breastfeeding. I've weighed him after each feeding the past two days. He is getting *almost* the minimum of what he needs (24 oz). So I'm not quite ready to supplement with formula yet. I'm pretty much feeding him lots and lots and trying to get my supply up. And I've upped his solids intake, too, even though that's a challenge in and of itself. I met with his Service Coordinator Tiffany today and signed the paperwork to get him evaluated for Occupational Therapy. He may qualify for this and an OT will come out and help him with his eating. He is doing a little better but still doesn't really know how to open his mouth. He is swallowing the baby food a little bit better, though.

We are going to be putting up our Christmas decorations and tree this weekend. YAY!!! I seriously love this time of year, even if the decorating is a little harder now with two boys. :)

Here are the latest pictures.

This one is a little hard to see b/c of the sunlight coming in the window. But if you click on it to enlarge it, you'll be able to see the ADORABLE look on Benjamin's face as he hangs out with Frank on the rug.



By the time I got over there, he had rolled over and was kicking Frank with his right foot, which is *always* kicking!! Luckily, Frank is very docile and is used to it from Andrew by now.



We went last night to get our family Christmas pictures taken. Here are some funny ones of my brothers I got in the waiting room. Here's Justin, who turns 28 next Monday.



And Michael, who was enjoying the sample pictures. He's 33 and his wife is expecting their first child; she's due in April!!



Oh, Benjamin, how I love you.

Thanks for keeping up with us!!

OH WAIT!! I have a question for moms of babies. Or those who had babies and still have enough brain cells to remember what their eating habits were like when they were taking a bottle. Did you find that your babies ate less as the day progressed? I am trying to figure out if I'm having a supply issue or if Benjamin just less as the day goes on. He always seems perfectly content after eating. But he's definitely getting less and less milk with each feeding. He gets about 9 oz, then about 6, then 4, then 3. He sleeps all night and does not seem hungry except when it's time to eat. (Even then sometimes not.) So...what is the dealio? *Let me clarify that he eats for about the same length of time each time he eats. You would think that he was getting the same amount. But twenty minutes of nursing does not equal twenty minutes of nursing. Because the demand of the baby over time determines the supply.*

I like to sleep in socks...so sue me!

There are things that I like that are unpopular. And I don't care! People are just snobs anyway. But I *like* to wear socks to bed!! Deal with it! I don't always do it, but I do most of the time.

Also, it was brought to my attention that some people consider 2-in-1 shampoo/conditioner to be low-class. REALLY? Even the $8 Pantene? It's the ultimate cure for laziness. If it's wrong then I don't wanna be right.

Okay, so before I forget, here are a few updates:

--Matthew did NOT win the Disney marathon essay contest. However, he decided that he really wanted to run it anyway and signed up to run it on its own. (It was at full capacity but opened up to 99%, so he jumped at the chance.) He is going to run the 5K on Friday, January 9 (CIGNA is paying for this race) and the marathon is Sunday, January 11. The 5K goes through Animal Kingdom and the marathon goes through the Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Animal Kingdom, and MGM. We considered taking a family vacation there, but to be honest, I just don't think I'm ready to do Disney yet. Benjamin is too young and naps too much and breastfeeds too much. Plus his muscle tone has a lot to do with it. He's almost seven months old but is still very weak. He is nowhere NEAR being able to ride in a stroller unless he's strapped in his infant carrier. He just doesn't have the trunk strength. I don't want to have to wear him for five days straight. We will probably only go once or *maybe* twice ever b/c it's all so expensive. I want it to be enjoyable. So we might wait until next year. I know Andrew will be older but he'll still be three and will still enjoy it. So Matthew will most likely just go down by himself (unless one of his friends decides to go with him) and stay in a cheap hotel for a few days. He's so excited!!

--We made Spring Break plans!!!!!! I'm pumped and ready for April! It's been far too long since we've been to the beach. We are going with my mom at the beginning of April to my friend Stephanie's condo. Here's the link so you can be dreadfully jealous. Actually don't be jealous. There are plenty of available dates. You can book your own marvelous getaway!

--I tried a bottle tonight, and Benjamin drank it right up!!!! I am so excited!! That makes it so much easier for us to go to the Harry Connick, Jr. concert in about a month. Yay!

--Benjamin is doing GREAT! Only two more weeks until the worst part of the heart surgery is over. The ban will then be lifted on picking him up under his arms. They said to wait about two months before we resumed lifting him under his arms. Do you know how hard it is to pick up a 6 1/2-month-old baby out of the highchair *without* lifting him under his arms? Ugh!

--Some of you are aware that we had to implement a little thing called cry-it-out (or as us cyber-hip mamas call it, "CIO") last week with Benjamin. I am not one for rocking my babies to sleep. I think it is a very good skill for them to learn good sleep habits early, like how to soothe themselves and put themselves to sleep. Well, because of his heart condition and then recovering from surgery, I was afraid to let him cry for extended periods of time. But one day last week, I had HAD it! He wasn't even doing well when I would try to rock him to sleep as I had been having to do for months. He only took a short afternoon nap (like 20 minutes) and then would NOT go to sleep again until bedtime. He was screaming and his cheeks were all red. It was a rough day. I was so pooped I literally went to bed at 7:30. That night I decided that I could NOT do it anymore. The next day I implemented CIO. I would put him down for his naps and then only check on him after so many minutes. It only took about a day or two, and now even though he still sometimes cries for about ten minutes, he still goes to sleep. On his own! He has discovered that he likes sleeping on his belly, so that is helping.

Okay, drumroll please...here are some pictures, complete with commentary of course.

See the playmat? That's where Benjamin started out. But he ended up over by the wall. Look how cute!



I love this boy!

Guess who?

He is doing a little better with baby food, despite what you see here. He's not eating it that great yet, but he's at least making some progress.

Falling asleep on Daddy's shoulder at a school event of my mom's.

Andrew and I built a road with his blocks. Well, really, he handed me blocks and I built it. That's why it's so straight. As you can see, the ambulance is already at the scene of the crime and the police car is coming for backup. :)



Andrew can now open doors. Which is not always good, but very helpful at times like this when I was hanging out on the bed and Frank wanted out.

Just two brothers having a chat.

Oops. (It really looks a lot worse than in is...don't freak out, Stephanie!)

I can't wait until they're the best of friends.

I guess this is what you call Future Blackmail. I told him to give Benjamin a sweet kiss and this is what I captured. Priceless.

Cute babyface + babyfood prunes = messy face. (It only looks like it's coming out of his nose!)

Cold day + wearing a hat while playing upstairs = CRAZY HAIR!

The next few pictures are of the BEST PICTURE EVER. Several months ago, I entered Benjamin in a Beautiful Babies Contest at the best hospital ever, Parkridge East Hospital. The winners got a professional photography session with Rhonda Mathis, and the pictures are now displayed in the newly-renovated BEAUTIFUL waiting room area of the maternity ward. Of course, my sweet baby was one of the 20 babies selected. The photo session was in September, so his chest is sweet and unblemished by the scar from his heart surgery. We also got an 8 x 10 of this picture, which I hope to frame with one of Stephanie's *beautiful* handmade frames. Click here to see her amazing work.

On Thursday night, the hospital had an event to unveil the pictures and the renovations. It looks amazing!!! And the cheese sticks were yummmmy. Here we are in front of his picture, which is right past the double doors before you get to the waiting room chairs on the right.

Just a cute shot of the brothers "playing."

Remember that Fear Not party we went to? Well, Andrew got this snake there. It is the first toy he has given an actual name to. ("Baby Owl" and "Baby Rabbit" don't techically count even though they're really cute.) Ladies and gentlemen, meet Robbie the Snake. Andrew loves Robbie the Snake and has me retrieve Robbie the Snake from the bedroom when he is eating his applesauce so Robbie the Snake can look at the big bites Andrew is taking. Andrew loves Robbie the Snake almost as much as Mister Tim, whose house we got Robbie the Snake at.

Here is Andrew showing Robbie the Snake to Benjamin.

And here are Benjamin and Robbie the Snake just seconds later, watching Andrew spastically run into the next room...

...and dive into the gigantic box. You remember the BOX, don't you?

Frank was close behind. I zoomed in just in case you wanted a better shot of my toddler diving headfirst into a giant box on the hardwood floor.

Here is the picture!!!!!!! Yes, that's me. :)

I don't know if you know this, but evidently Down syndrome kids are really flexible. Here's proof:

Love him!

And lastly, here is an adorable video. It's only about one minute long, and it's really dark. But the sound. Oh, the sweet sound of a laughing baby is just endearing. Be sure to go to the very bottom of this page first and pause the music.

Sorry it was over a week in between my blogs! It's been so busy here and I've honestly just not had time. I would say that things will hopefully slow down, but who are we kidding? It's almost the holidays...BRING IT ON!

**Oh, here's my "missing" post from earlier. I decided to just add it to the bottom of this post. They're out of stock by now anyway, and that post was hiding this one. I feared that some people might not see this one, and to be perfectly honest, it took me too long on this post for it to be missed!**

Car Seat Steal!!!!!!! OUT OF STOCK!

**Evidently, as of 10:45 p.m., they are out of stock. Hope you got yours!!**

I am currently working on a new blog post, but b/c I've been so busy lately, there's a lot to say and a lot of pictures. In the meantime, if any of you are in the market for a convertible car seat, check this out. (But you'd better order fast. I just emailed a bunch of my mommy friends. Two of them emailed me back within minutes, telling me they had *just* placed their orders!) Here is my email:

I’m not sure if any of you would be interested in this, but it was too good a deal not to share! I just ordered two!!!!!!!!! The seat that Andrew is in now belongs to my sister-in-law, who is pregnant and will need it back in a year or so. And they go up to 60 pounds, so I’ll have two boys in convertible seats for awhile. I’m so excited!!!! These seats are normally $279, and they’re on sale for $42.99 with free shipping. Sure, it’s not the greatest color, but I have boys, so it’s not as important. :)

Angela

http://www.target.com/Britax-Marathon-Convertible-Car-Seat/dp/B000YSNMG2/sr=1-8/qid=1226884246/ref=sr_1_8/178-3563354-7432540?ie=UTF8&index=target&rh=k%3Abritax%20marathon%20car%20seats&page=1