So, let us get real here.  I love to blog.  But, 50% of the time I completely forget to keep track of what I am doing.  This mainly happens in the kitchen.  When I think of a recipe I want to share with you guys I make sure to follow the entire process step by step so that it is easily replicated.  And then I have recipes that I make “on a whim” – without writing down recipes, or taking pictures of the final product and they turn out SO good it hurts to know I did not record a single ounce of it.

But you before you think to yourself  “who the hell cares, abby” – you’ve got nothing to show us …

I am going to make these recipes all over again just so that you guys can make them too!

Wahoo! You with me?

Here are the recipes you guys missed out on, and soon to be filled in on – plus, a little participation from you is needed to start the round up!

Also – I am inserting adorable pictures from when the boys were little, because who doesn’t want to see that?

Chicken Pot Pie – 

I made this dish for my sister-in-law that just had a baby (you saw about in this post yesterday) I made a batch large enough that I was able to make one pie to eat that evening for dinner, and one to put in the freezer and bring to her house so her family could enjoy it when having time for dinner is not on the list!

The kids slammed this dinner which was absolutely shocking because they tend to be super picky at things that are mixed together.  They question each little nuggets of food on their fork before sampling.  A few nibbles in and this was gobbled up! Comfort food at its finest!

Pulled Pork – 

Holy Pig you guys! I have made tons and tons of pulled pork recipes in the past.  Usually they end in being smothered in our favorite bbq sauce before piling onto buns.  THIS pulled pork in particular required zero extra saucing at the end.  The flavors were through the freaking roof! We enjoyed it on buns with cole slaw one night, and the next piled high on blue corn nachos with pineapple, banana peppers and extra toppings.  I could not stop eating (ask our guests) – This pulled pork will become a monthly family favorite!

fettucine Chicken Alfredo – 

Dan nearly jumped over the table for a dinner make out session this was SO unbelievably delicious! We never made alfredo pasta for dinner – and yet it one of both of our favorite dishes.  Owen of course being allergic is number 1.  Number 2 – jarred alfredo grosses me out.  Number 3 – making it from scratch gave me 100 reasons of why not to make it, how it could go terribly wrong.  My word how I was wrong.  Not only was this dish whipped up in the time it took to boil + cook the pasta – it was SO rich and SO much better than any alfredo we’ve ever had.

Guiness Corn Beef + Cabbage Rolls –

Who ever does not like corn beef, you may have fallen ill and need to get checked by a doctor.  This salty tender beef has got to be the only red meat I look forward to during this time of year.  The guiness corn beef recipe I used created a brisket that appeared nearly smoked.  With a thick sticky glaze and the most tender rich meat inside.  I pulled it apart – and used it to make corn beef cabbage rolls for Brody’s birthday party this past weekend.  Chunks of corn beef, cabbage, swiss cheese and chopped green onion, rolled into an egg roll – baked until crispy and dipped into 1000 island dressing.  Come on – no luck of the irish needed.  Just a pair of stretchy pants.  These were AMAZING!

My mouth is watering thinking of all of this deliciousness.  I just need your help deciding what I should show you guys first! Leave me a comment below and tell me which dish you would like to see next week on the blog 🙂

Just shy of two weeks ago, Dan and I welcomed a perfectly sweet little nephew into the world.  My sister in law is one amazing tough woman who brought this munchkin into our family and we could not be more excited to be a part of his life.  We are officially Aunt Abby and Uncle Dan! Gah! Say that with a southern accent ya’ll, we should be on a farm!

His sister was so sweet to of let me take pictures of her before he arrived, moments during the labor and pictures after he was born.  I wanted to share with you a few I took – because no matter how much I lack skill in the photography world, he is far too handsome not to share!

Here are a few maternity shots of the radiant mama to be a few weeks ago!

I have known Dan’s sister since I was just 17 years old.  So nearly half of my life at this point.  To say she is “like” a sister to me is an understatement.

I mean come on now.  That bump!

She carried her pregnancy with such grace.  I felt like I was waddling around whining by the time I was weeks away.  You could truly see how excited she was to become a mom and it was so fun to snap a few pictures of this special time before he made his appearance shortly after!

About a 10 days later this little man entered the world.  Gave his mama quite the ride – but I am sure I can speak for her and say he is totally worth it!

We love you sweet Gavin!

Taking pictures of a newborn is far from easy.  Gosh, Pinterest makes it look so simple.  Thankfully, his mama kept the house so nice and warm and he is by far the calmest newborn I have ever come across.

Can  you even handle those big feet and wrinkly arms?!   I need a baby. stat.

Fairly certain he was thinking at this time …. Ooo so you are that crazy aunt abby I heard so much about.

A little magnets go a long way.  Gavin boy, you had us at hello.

I cannot even wrap my head around how adorable he is!

This amazing Homage hat was a gift from my brother to brody for his birthday, when he realized the hat was far too small he graciously offered it up to Gavin.  Love my brother for that, just a big heart.

 Plus – look at Gavin in it! Heart swells!

He is one alert little man, so this was one of the few pictures I got of him peacefully sleeping.  Such a stud that kid, I tell ya!

We love you Gavin – may you know today and always how much we love ya and we will always strive to be cool aunt abby and uncle dan.  Spoil you rotten with loud obnoxious toys, let you eat dessert before dinner and stay up way past your bedtime!

xoxo aunt abby and uncle dan.

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It’s March already? Whoops.  Sorry guys – first lesson in following a blogger – things tend to get sporadic and we lose track of time, or am I just speaking for myself?

Anyway.

My latest BIG news …

I can read!

I remembered it all like I was sitting in Kindergarten listening to my teacher ramble the ABC’s.  It’s not funny – it had been so long since I sat and read a book.  Up until this year I was afraid I had to get hooked on phonics, or start with those level 1 reading books Brody has.

But here I am, proud to say I tackled my last choice in just days – and now I’ve picked the next book for us all to tackle!

 In January I told you guys that I wanted to start a book club.  A way to get my eyes off of the t.v. and my fingers moving pages instead.  I chose Wild, by Cheryl Strayed.  The book turned movie starring Reese Witherspoon ( in which I am itching to see!)

I anticipated it taking me the entire month to finish.  That finding time alone, in peace and quiet to sit down would hardly come at all.   Come to find the only thing I wanted to do all day every day was sit down and read my way through Cheryls story.  It took only a few days to read the book.  It did not matter if I had 5 minutes or an hour to spare – I was sucked into her story and spent that week ripping through each page in anticipation for the next.  I loved the book!

Kids running circles around me – it did not matter.  It was a little slice of me time that I loved so much.

Cheryl, you are amazing – if you are reading this (of course you are. haha.) I admire all that you went through.  I honestly could not make it around the block at night by myself without getting scared.  Let alone be faced with wild animals, strangers (stranger danger!) all while left with my own thoughts and no starbucks.  You are wonder woman.

  How February slipped through my fingertips, I am not exactly sure.  But I guess forming new habits takes practice.  So the other day I got my next choice in the mail.  Using Amazon of course to order, 2 day free shipping gets me every time!  Which, in true Abby fashion this book is now a movie-

My interest towards this book shot into full gear while watching Kelly & Michael in the morning.  Kelly just gabbed on and on about how touching and amazing the movie was (starring another favorite actress of mine, Julianne moore).  I knew then and there that I would have to read the book first.  Never thought I would be the girl to think that – but after reading Wild, I realized that reading wasn’t something I “should’ be doing, it was actually entertaining! Now, let us not get that mixed up with how entertaining watching the Bachelor is  – wink wink.

Still Alice is about a married woman, mother of 3, who is diagnosed with early onset alzheimers disease.  The story follows her journey as she battles with what is happening to her, all while making the best of the time she has left.  This story pulled at my heart strings.  We all know someone who is suffering from diseases like this and I knew I wanted to get my hands on this book and read the entire story!

Who will join me this month? I’d love to hear what those of you who read Wild thought of it as well!

I know what you all are thinking, wait a second – you celebrated Owen’s 3rd birthday last year and this was his first day of preschool last week? Most kids start right at the age of 3 – even earlier depending upon the parents decision.  And that is exactly what it boiled down to for us.  A decision made.  We kept both of our boys at home up until they nearly turned 4 – and then put them into preschool for a few months at the end of the year.  A little pre view for pre-k, if you will.

You may think I am crazy for skipping over months of time “he should” be in school – but, from our experience it really works for us and our boys.  Every family is different, has different systems and preferences.  For us, it works, and our boys have thrived just as well as any other child in their class.

We talked about school a lot with Owen.  And obviously from watching his big brother go every day he understood a bit more about what it was all to entail.  The first day for him was just as I anticipated.  Excitement, followed by nervousness at the drop off, and tears as he realized that I did indeed have to leave his side.  The second time around it was far easier to leave him there.  I know how much he will benefit from being in a classroom.   (And if I am being 100% honest, it is really nice to have 2 hours alone now a few times a week)

Holding his peanut little hand in mine, walking him into his classroom doors – watching his eyes go from interested to worried definitely tugged at my momma heart.  When those little hands wrapped around my leg and he started to wipe his eyes, I knew the tears were a few blinks away.  I swiftly said my goodbye, my I love you’s and let the teacher calm him down.  I of course was worried he would cry the entire time.  I was awaiting a phone call – to let me know he was having a hard time.  2 hours flew by so quickly, and there I was watching a proud smiley little fella walk out of class SO happy to tell me all about what he did that day.

PHEW! We did it!

There is something so rewarding as a parent when you see your kids do well under someone elses supervision.  I cringe most of my day at the things my kids say.  Like their new obsession, the word – boobs.  Or the things that they do – taking their clothes off 24/7.  We are a clothing optional home, apparently.

Fearing that they will say/do ridiculous things in front of their peers is definitely a hump to get over.  We are proud of the boys they are – their personalities are irreplaceable.  They say it like it is and we love that about them both.

Over only a few days of school have I seen how ready he is, and how our timing was exactly right, he has gained so much confidence in himself.

It feels so good as parents to feel like you’re doing something right.

why is it that the good never feels quite good enough?

when days of momentum and moving forward can so easily slip to ten steps back.

why do we hold ourselves to a bar that seems so unreachable?

yet, it seems it is the only way to get confirmation of doing things right.

i learned very quickly last year to learn to let it go.

to stop holding myself to certain standards of what i thought i should be.

or in fact, what others expected of me.

raising two little boys in the beginning was smooth sailing.  really, i was on top of my mom game and our days flowed smoother than skippy peanut butter.  i was truly proud of the mother i was in the beginning.  somewhere between diapers and hospital visits things changed.  one son with ulcerative colitis, and the other with allergies and severe asthma, i found myself overwhelmed and completely unprepared for what motherhood was to throw at me.

it stirred up emotions that i never quite tapped into.  fear, anxiety, disappointment.  i was always an optimistic gal with a thumb for being able to bring things into perspective.  so swiftly i found myself in situations where i had no idea where i went wrong or how to make things right.  i felt an immense amount of guilt for brody’s diagnosis.  how we went so long for it to suddenly pop up at the age of 5 – that his future with the disease is so unknown.  hovering over owen at every second of his toddler life.  hoping he wouldn’t come in contact with something that would throw him into weeks of an exaggerated asthma attack, hospital stays and breathing treatments.

i felt awful.  i felt like a failure.  i felt exhausted of all of my positive perception i once had for myself.

i vocalized these things to danny – in which he of course shot all negative comments down, coming back with nothing short of the nicest reassuring things to say about me as a wife and mother.

but why.  why did i feel so crappy?

i set my bar way to high.  higher than normal.  which was the biggest problem of all.

my new normal felt everything but normal to me.  and it took time for me to adjust.  keeping it all together and staying strong during the stickiest of times felt impossible, and yet i did it.  it wasnt until things were actually leveling out that i started to fear when things were to go wrong again.   as soon as the waves stood still, it felt to good to be true.  i was just anticipating the next challenge.

it left me with a knot in my stomach.  i needed to stop worrying so much – but when you have a family to care for it seemed like the only thing on my mind.

with faith and family i found myself starting to gain confidence again.  learning that i did not have to be ashamed for not having it all together.  putting on a brave face 24/7 can be draining.

it took over a year of being more honest.  being more in touch with how i really feel.

 it took a year of believing more in myself and more in what was to be.  feeling more confident in that what may come my way i could handle.  maybe not with grace, or without an ugly cry or anxiety attack, but i would come out the other end a better me.

i hope that all mothers out there realize that chasing the “perfect you” is an endless chase.

find perfection in moments that scream everything short of perfect.  striving for perfection seems silly, but striving to do better and be better is simply a beautiful way to live.

  in that very moment of a no makeup, errand running, kids screaming in the car mess.

 while you sit through doctor visits, balancing life as a wife, mother and friend.

 while you feel so out of touch with the real world and feel so consumed in laundry, dishes and wiping boogers.

 lets look at perfection differently.

  valuing yourself and who you are right now will take you leaps and bounds to who you can become.  do not limit yourself to comparison.  don’t hold yourself down to days that did not go as planned.

today, tomorrow you get a second chance.  a second try to getting things a little bit more right.

you are perfect.  you are you.  own it.  learn to love it.

embrace perfection at its least perfect time.

xoxo abby

Bringing it back, remember this original post from 2 years ago?

Here are some of the boys photo booth moments from this past year, our funny valentine from us to you.

Sending lots of love on this hallmark holiday.  At the end of the day, no matter what the title or trend may be, it is important to tell those you love how much they mean to you.

xoxo abby