S'mores Cookie Bars

Your Tummy will Thank Me.

S'mores Cookie Bars Recipe

Ingredients
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1-1/3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 (1.55 oz. each) milk chocolate candy bars
1 cup marshmallow creme

Preparation
Heat oven to 350°F. Grease 8-inch square baking pan.

Beat butter and sugar in large bowl until light and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla; beat well. Stir together flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder and salt; add to butter mixture, beating until blended. Press half of dough into prepared pan.

Arrange chocolate bars over dough, breaking as needed to fit. Spread with marshmallow creme. Patch together pieces of remaining dough over marshmallow; carefully press to form a layer.

Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Cut into bars.

If anyone out there decides to make these, let me know if you are as obsessed with them as I am after the first bite!

Comin' Along....

Things with the house are comin' along.. slowly. I have to remind myself that a new house is an ongoing project..

We finally got to utilize these fabulous copper pots and rack that have been in boxes since our wedding shower in 2008! Its great to finally cook with them, and the pot rack is very Williams Sonoma/French Julia Child kitchen, to which I am tres obsessed with, ha!

And Daddy has been doing the bedtime routine with Samantha Jane. Which has been such a breath of fresh air for me. What a change! Ever since she decided to boycott bottles, Somewhere in the 6-7 month age.. Its been all Momma.. yikes. I needed a break.

Im finally starting to capture the freedom of not breastfeeding anymore! I can go out with the girls if I want, I can go shopping at night, and I can enjoy a few adult beverages!!.. Oh and the greatest thing I had to give up having.. Coffee and Chocolate.. oh how I have missed you both!

Since I have been catching up on no coffee or choc.. I made an amazing snack this morning while Samantha slept in.. S'Mores Cookie Bars... UNBELEIVEABLE... Recipe and picture are COMING!

The End of My Milking Era..

Samantha Jane had her year checkup on Monday, July 19th. We pushed it back because of the move, etc. and I knew she was getting a boat load of shots, so I wanted to do one thing at a time, move in, then shots.. ha!

She got pretty sick too from the shots, she was running a 104 temp for about 2 days, and was very miserable poor bubba.

Anyways.. when we were there we met with the Lactation Nurse, and she asked, how is nursing going? To which I quickly responded, "i think im ready to be done" haha.. I would continue, but I feel that Sam's sleeping habits will IMPROVE without me nursing her. Plus, she loves whole milk, so she clearly does not NEED to breastfeed, she just WANTS to breastfeed.

I was dreading the end of nursing, more because I feel guilty and know that she likes it so much, but I am very proud of myself that I nursed her for 13 months.. and she quite frankly, looks so big when I would nurse her, I felt like she looked too old to be nursing.. ha!

Mathew and I were going to a wedding this past weekend for my friend Traci in Ohio, not staying overnight, but Grammy would have to put her to bed, so the nurse said, "perfect" then Saturday is the day. "dont give into her when you get back though"... and i didnt!...

Needless to say.. it took a LONG LONG time to get her down Sunday and Monday middle of the night. She woke up once both days. And then last night, took her about 3 min to fall asleep, and she SLEPT THROUGH THE NIGHT!.. DO you know how long I have been waiting for this?????????? Since we pulled out of the driveway from our Condo in North Carolina, November 23rd 2009 thats WHEN!... So i hope anyone reading this can feel my pain when I say.. I havent slept through the night since then either!

The nurse was right when she said.. It would be harder on me than for her giving up nursing. And since she's sleeping better already after the 3rd day.. I am convinced that I am doing the right thing.

Her nursing days are over, and its kind of bittersweet. Best decision, and easiest thing in the world to do though was nurse.

My baby is growing up so fast, I cannot beleive it.

So I'm packing away my breastpump, bottles, nipples, breast pads, other supplies. It is the end of my milk factory era, and it feels great!

Birthday Pics

Ok this post is a little late I realize. Just some pics from her partes.



This dress courtesy of the lovely Julie! It was so stinkin' cute on her.. Thanks again Julie!








Cupcake Time!






And if 1 party wasnt enough, we got all pretty for another party for cousin Joseph's 3rd Birthday the very next day!



And cake again!...

Playing Catch Up

It seems like an eternity since I've posted!
We've been so busy with moving into the new house and shopping for the new house...and Momma and Dadda have been working and taking care of SJM... sooo here's a few things we've been up to..

A few visits to Target

And Home Depot

And we even managed a little Family outing for Old Home Days in our village. The parade marks the start of the OHD festival. And the parade just happened to start at our street!




Samantha loved all the firetrucks, bands, and dancing and baton twirlers


With all this moving.. I hardly noticed that Samantha was welcoming tooth numbers 5 and 6 on top!...


She was super cranky this past week..
One day in particular she would NOT go down for a nap.



She always naps!... So I sat her on the couch after many tries... and bouts with crying... and she finally was out....


within literally 2 minutes.


All in all I think she likes her new house! I even think she loves her new room! She's had small pockets of sleeping through the night, which is so great!

Auntie Shauna is home! We are so excited she is back for a visit! And so is Samantha! It took her about 10 minutes to warm up and remember her.. but soon enough she was handing out kisses and laughing and having fun with her.

I just realized I didnt post for Month 12 yet.. Its coming! - Sam has her year Dr's Appt on Monday (7/19) - So I'll post the Month 12 story when I have her accurate Doc stats!.. Should be interesting... Another round of shots I beleive... hmm

Movin' Day - 7.10.10

Moving Day was this weekend.
We once again packed all our belongings and are headed to our new home! We are so excited! It has been fun living with Grammy, Uncle, and at one time Auntie was with us too! Yikes. It was fun, crowded, frustrating at times, hot, cold, wonderful, and we made it work!

Just 8 short months ago, we packed up a truck this very size in North Carolina and said goodbye to the South with bittersweet feelings, and we did the very same thing this past weekend. But instead of traveling 1,400 miles north, we traveled 1.6 miles East of Grammy's house! ha!


Uncle and Mathew loaded up the truck, and were headed over to the new house by 11am.. not bad. Grammy is in Seattle, and we cant wait till she gets back to help us! W

Samantha was a trooper!


Here she is on our way to Bed Bath and Beyond ...probably for the 5th time in the past 3 days.. but she kept herself occupied with some new ice cube trays.



She even slept through the night at her new house in her new bedroom! Fantastic. And she took a 4 hour nap for us the next day so we could unpack and get organized! ... I knew she wouldnt miss sleeping in a hallway versus her own room! who would? haha!

I think better sleeping patterns are a comin' and its about time!

Until next time, we're unpacking, organizing, painting, hanging blinds, cleaning, and enjoying our new house!

Birth Story cont...

I know it is DAYS later.. but just a few memories from little Samantha's entrance into the world.

I remember waking up, and being "checked" and the baby's heart rate kept dropping. I was in labor almost 20 hrs at this point.. and the doc's were talking an emergency c-section, because her heart rate was dipping through the night and into the morning and they were concerned with getting her out asap.

I was freaking out.. as they were explaining what I would feel, how long it would take, only 1 person allowed in the surgery room, etc. And around 11am, I felt different. I was feeling like something was coming ...and I had to push. I told the nurse to check me. She was so sweet. She knew I wanted to have the baby naturally, and she saw how upset I was when the doc's kept freaking me out with all the baby heart rate/c-section talk.

She was "checking" and came back up and said.. Your a 10. You are gonna have this baby naturally!.. Let me get the midwife and we're gonna start pushing, okay? Music to my ears.

I started pushing around 11:45 I think.. and as I was getting closer, I vaguely noticed all these "carts" with utensils, aand more and more people coming in and out, and the incubator light turned on, so i knew it wasnt long and I just kept pushing as HARD as I could.

I had an epidural, but i was starting to feel my tips of my feet, and it was moving up my leg.. MY EPIDURAL WAS WEARING OFF!!! .. I pushed even harder and it was my motivation at that point. Momma didnt want to feel anything past her knees!.. Mathew held up one leg and Mom held the other..

Mom was my cheerleader, and was great.. But I had to shut her up once she started telling me she could see the baby's head.. NOT the visual I wanted to hear at that moment! ha! .. And Mathew was my strong, loving, patient partner. He was looking into my eyes, and saying.. "come on you can do it.. you're almost there"..

My midwife was AMAZING!

I loved her so much. Olivia. She was JUST what I needed after 24 hours of labor. A little tough love, and a gentle voice. I remember saying.. "I cant do this".. and she said "I dont wanna hear that.. now take all that pain, and push it out between your legs".. and you know what? I did. After she was "coaching" me.. I listened to her and she was inspiriational. I only wish she would be here again when I get pregnant some day.

She's even my facebook friend now! ha!

Samantha Jane was born at 1:38pm. In the Naval Hospital in Jacksonville, North Carolina. She came out quiet. not a peep. I was nervous of course, so I asked, why isnt she crying? Is she ok? .. Just as they started giving her a sponge bath, she started wailing.. and it was almost comforting to hear.

I felt great afterwards.. and I remember saying.. "that wasnt that bad..."

20 minutes later my epidural was gone.. I could feel and move my legs again. I even got up and took a shower! Of course I was still on some heavy meds.. but the fact that I got up and walked to the shower .. never thought i'd be doing that.

I got out of the shower, and held my little miracle. I couldnt beleive she was ours.. I kept thinking.. I cannot beleive just an hour ago she wasnt here and now she is. and she's perfect.. just perfect. we were so in love ...

4th of July baby?

Last year at this very moment I was hanging in there.. dialated at 4cm only after being induced at 12 noon at the Naval Hospital, Camp Lejeune, NC.

I was about 1 hour away from my epidural. In so much pain, but trying to "experience labor" and "stick it out" as long as I could. I could NOT anymore.. haha..


We had gone to the hospital to check how I was doing since my week long stay. The Dr. looked at Samantha, and said to me .. "hmm, well this changes things a bit,"... as I looked nervously. "See this black circle, thats the placenta, and see this white stuff, thats fluid.. I dont see a lot of fluid in there and this is a concern. Instead of inducing you on the 6th, we're going to do it today, okay, cause I dont like what I see."

GULP... Today? ..... I thought.. Im not ready.. I dont have my bags, this was only supposed to be a check up! My induction date was set for 7/6! - I asked.. "Can I go home and get my things?" To which he replied, "No, I want to get you admitted right away and start the process.

HOLY LORD! - So as of 12 noon on the fourth of July, I was in a hospital gown, watching TV as the nurses prepped my birthing suite, and Mom and Mathew went home to get my things, grab some food, drinks and their overnight necessities.. they were campin' out with me until that baby came! ..

We lived 45 min away from Camp Lejeune, so Mom and Mathew had no choice! haha..
Its so foggy to me, but I will try to re-collect the details of today 1 year ago.

I remember getting induced and having a bulbus placed "down there" haha.. which would help soften and get things going. At 5pm, not a lot of progess, so the doctor broke my water for me, to get things moving... they moved very SLOWLY...



By 11pm I was dialated only to 4cm, and had an epidural administered. I was in so much pain.. I had a catheter at that time, so i couldnt leave the bed once that was in.. and i just cried and wimpered all night. Mathew played Jazz music, scratched my back and I tried to relax,

I cant really recall the type of pain, I just remember that the epidural didnt take the pain away entirely like I thought it would. I imagined the epidural as being this miracle drug, and I would be numb all over and the baby would just slide right out.. WRONG!

I mean, I was numb all over, and I couldnt move my legs or feel anything from the waist down, (such a weird experience) But I still was in pain...



Since it was July 4th. The base was basically shut down. There were hardly any people in the whole hospital .. It was very quiet, and I think only 1 other person was having a baby at the same time as I was.

Mom would step out and make phone calls giving our family updates on what was going on, etc, and I remember my nurses were so patient and wonderful.We were asking so many questions and asking advice, etc.. and they were great.

Mom and Mathew I remember were on two pullout beds in front of mine, and would take turns waking up if I needed anyting. We waited and waited and all night nothing happened.

No 4th of July baby for me.. I knew it would have to happen on the 5th, but I didnt know just when. I remember falling in and out of sleep...and then before i knew it, morning was here



To be continued tomorrow!

Busy Bees

So we've been so busy, cleaning, packing and cleaning some more. Mostly Mathew has been over at the new house cleaning up and down. We ripped out rugs, stripped wallpaper, washed walls, tore down trees, got a new roof, and theres still a little more to do before move in day.

Sam and I had to go meet the Locksmith today, and I didnt want to put her on the dirty floor, since we didnt mop/clean the main floor yet, so this seemed like the perfect spot, and yes she looks HUGE in it!



But I did snap a few pics of our living room and dining room while I was there...Im getting so excited!





And since Sam decided to wake us up at 5:30am for the DAY... she was in la la land super early tonight. She fell asleep in her stroller like this...



So i thought, h great, I'll just transfer her, and maybe she wont wake up to nurse, she'll just go to bed.. WRONG... she woke up screaming 20 minutes later, and I nursed her back to sleep.. ugh. Dont get me wrong, I am so proud of myself for sticking with it.,but I am trying to see the light at the end of the tunnel, I know we're close..

Samantha turns 1.. Party Decor

So we had a little party this past weekend for SJM. And Momma was busy making decorations, organizing tables, etc.. I wanted her first birthday party to be so fun and girly, with a little splash of animal print!

Here is her invite, just to set the stage for her color scheme, etc..




So here are a few pics I snapped before her guests arrived...

Birthday Banner I made, hanging on the deck.



And I took some of her baby pics from her room and put them on the cupcake/candy table



I tried to have a little Martha Stewart candy bar happenin'



And here is the little Queen's birthday seat, where she put on a good show of frosting and cake all over her face.



And.. TADA.. the infamous cupcakes! - I made her little SJM and "1" cupcake toppers, and the cupcakes were Golden Vanilla Cake with Pink, Vanilla, and Chocolate Fudge Frosting, and loads and loads of hot pink, chocolate, and white sprinkles, & non-pariels.





And one of her presents from Momma, and Dadda.. was this little rocking chair I have been working on forever!!! I may add some more too it, but i just ran out of time with all that was going on this week preparing for the Samanthapalooza.





Next post will be details about her party, pics of the little princess, and all that good stuff.

We are getting ready to travel to Ohio tomorrow, so I will try to get to this tonight hopefully.

So for anyone reading this, whadda ya think of my decor skills? haha.. Next year the party will be at our new house! yeah!