introducing baby b...

He's here!

Beau Andrew

born Tuesday, September 8, 2015

2:51pm

9 lbs 7oz and 22.25" long

This not so little man made an entrance on Tuesday afternoon and has since rocked our world. Labor and delivery wasn't so bad after all (but doesn't come without its flaws) and we've just been learning the ropes and trying to get some sleep over here before we go home this afternoon. I can't wait to share my birth story soon (I promise to keep it PG rated!) and Mark is looking forward to watching football with his new buddy this weekend. 

That's all the info for now, but here are a few pictures from the last two days:

(yawn)

naturally cheesy | my #1 easy fall dip recipe

 This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #NaturallyCheesy #CollectiveBias - Thanks for reading and supporting my family!

Can you feel it? It's here. The shift in seasons, the rumbling of football fanatics everywhere, the scurry of children off to school and the rejoicing of moms (including NEW moms!) everywhere for the ushering in of a new schedule. The weather may not reflect it yet, but Fall is pretty much here and in my household that means windows open, football on the TV, and yummy snacks everywhere. This year is TOTALLY different for our family with the addition of our newest member and that means I'm all about ease these days. What's easier than some good old fashioned loaded baked potato dip? Armed with the easiest ingredient list (below) and a Wal Mart nearby, you can whip this up in just a few minutes! It's the number one recipe on my list for football season!

As a baked potato lover, this dip is one of my very favorites. It doesn't hurt that it's SO super easy and will have your football fans (and everyone else) cheering. 

Like I said, our routine these days is a little different and includes grocery shopping during the DAY! Crazy, right?! I've started putting more thought into my grocery list and stops along the way and I've added Wal Mart to the list of stops. I can't beat their prices and the wide open aisles in the early morning are a new mom's dream!

Here's what you'll need for my loaded baked potato dip:

2 cups shredded cheese (I used Kraft Natural Shreds : Mexican Four Cheese.  Go ahead and get the 16oz bag so you have extra on hand!)

2 cups sour cream

1 cup chopped green onions

a splash of Worcestershire sauce

1 cup of bacon, crumbled

dry ranch seasoning

chips (your choice!) for dipping

Start off with a good-sized bowl and combine your dry ranch mix, sour cream, and Worcestershire sauce.

Add in your cheese, bacon, and onions. If you want more of one ingredient, go for it! The more cheese, the better (in my opinion)!

Mix it all together, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least one hour before serving.

Garnish with more cheese (duh), bacon, and onions and serve with chips. YUM!

This is seriously my favorite dip EVER and takes less than 5 minutes to assemble. Try it for your next party and watch the crowd go wild!

Be sure to pick up Kraft Natural Cheese for your fall routine the next time you're at the store and be sure to check out a game time demo on 9/26 at Walmart. I always have tons of cheese on hand! Right now, use this code to score $.55 off Philadelphia 2-pack & $.75 off 16oz Shreds. Hurry, the offer ends September 14!

Enjoy!!!

five on Friday | sitting, waiting, wishing

The motivation and the optimism around here is at an all-time low. I'm sorry, you guys! If you're counting, you now know I'm 40 weeks and 2 days pregnant. Yep. Hey, I said I thought I would go late, and I'm always right, so who's really surprised?

I've really enjoyed the last week of being a stay at home wife but I'm super eager to transition that into stay at home mom status. The days are a little harder when you're uncomfortable and yearning to meet your baby!

Nonetheless, I'm alive over here and to prove it, here are some thoughts from the week:

one.

I was too lazy to take an official 40 week bump picture but I snapped this one on the day of. My sister, mom, and niece came over to keep me company on the official due date and the day wasn't entirely disappointing - we discovered a new tasty pizza place nearby! Not all was lost. (and I enjoyed the family time and spending an hour going through baby's closet!)

two. 

I would have never guessed that I'd be at Target buying this the day after my son's due date...

(on sale, duh)

...but I considered it a 'prize' for the little girl previously mentioned that did this within 5 minutes of arriving at my home:

milk=spilled. I'm going to have to learn to expect/prepare for these things since I'm having a child any day now, but at least I'm prepared for any clumsy toddlers now! All nieces are now welcome to a drink at my house. ;)

three. 

The internet is joining the ranks of things that annoy me lately. The Bump has been telling me for WEEKS to 'update my pregnancy status'. Here's an update for you: nothing has changed. 

Then, I got this email from Huggies yesterday and cursed them under my breath:

Rude.

four.

I succumbed to pressure (my own) and headed out early on Tuesday to shop the 75% off sale at Divine Consign, yet another consignment sale I'm really into. It was crazy, y'all. I bought another 30 outfits but this time averaged $1 per item. Some things were 25 cents! Mark has now cut me off from clothes shopping...but that's ok because we all know baby has TONS of cute clothes now!

five. 

We've been doing lots of these lately just trying to get things moving. I foresee lots more of them in my near future until baby comes! C'mon little one!!!

So that's that. Sitting, waiting, wishing. I'm ready to meet my boy! 

I'll be back next week with the perfect appetizer recipe for Fall and hopefully a baby announcement! Y'all be praying for us! And happy Friday!!!

40 week bumpdate

Let's face it. I'm huge, hormonal, haven't worn makeup since last Thursday, and OVER IT. This picture is from my last day of work last week, so technically I was 39 weeks and 1 day along. Let's just call it 40 weeks though, okay? I'm pretty sure my stomach hasn't changed since then. So anyway, we've reached 40 weeks which is the end of the countdown but so far, not the end of the road. Any day now! (I've been saying that for 3 weeks...)

How far along:  FORTY weeks. The end of the countdown!

Size of babe: What is a jackfruit, exactly? Anyway, it's big. Just take my word for it.

Gender: Mr. Man! His full initials were revealed here! Anyone betting on a last minute surprise? I keep joking with Mark and saying "what if it's really a girl?" hahaha...not so funny to him.

Husband: Doing great and being anxious along with me about the impending arrival! He even sacrificed his 'last game of disc golf ever' to go with me to a consignment sale on Sunday. He's the best! (and he totally loved shopping for baby clothes)

Maternity Clothes: Now that I'm off work, it's pretty much tank tops and stretchy shorts all day every day.

Loving: hot baths, ice cold water, cereal, ice cold milk, frozen grape flavored fruit bars, quiet days at home.

Loathing: Walking, driving, people asking me if I'm in labor, getting out of bed, the entire bottom half of my body.

Movement: Yep! Little boy is more rolls than kicks now but ever since finding out how big he was at 37 weeks, he feels SO much bigger in there. He has this new thing where he wedges his foot into my ribs and it's AWESOME. (not awesome.)

Symptoms: Lots of pain down below, acid reflux, backaches, some contractions here and there of varying intensity.

Best Part of the Week: I scored some major deals at Divine Consign this week (over TWO days); so much so that Mark told me "how about no more clothes shopping" yesterday. hehehe. But it's such a good deal!!!

Worst Part of the Week: General anxiousness, worrying that my water might break in public, attempts to read signs and symptoms but just not really knowing at ALL when things are going to happen or how they might happen.

Missing Most: Sleeping normally. I figure I have at least another 9-12 months to wait for things to go back to even CLOSE to normal, though...

Can't wait for: This baby!!!! C'mon, lovebug!

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week 39

since I blogged last...

Not much has happened. 

My office threw Mark and me a super fun baby shower complete with all of my cravings during pregnancy:

I said my goodbyes last Thursday and transitioned into my role as a stay at home mom with a few days to spare before actually becoming a mom. It's nice to relax and get some things accomplished but OY am I anxious!!!

I've since gone to not one but TWO children's consignment sales and scored about 30 outfits for less than $100. #bargainhunter

(I didn't buy this, just snapped a picture to send to my mom)

I've also been a little overzealous in the subject of dog pictures:

We've taken a few walks to try and encourage things to get moving but with no luck so far. This time is so frustrating and trying because we know life will take a crazy turn at any moment! I feel like I'm just twiddling my thumbs over here and I can't focus on much of anything. "Baby go-time" is pretty much 100% on my mind! I'm SO ready to meet this little booger that we've been prepping for for 9 months!

Happy Monday!