Jon and Alyssa

I post this every year, and this year is no different. This is a web site I came across a few years ago, and I LOVE it! You can find almost all the great classic holiday recipes! Check it out!

North Pole Kitchen

I have been doing this the hard way for a while now. I have researched online with no avail. Then Made by Lex, a blog I follow, showed this great tutorial. So I thought I would share...

Enjoy...

Oh the Joys of the Christmas season when Trader Joe's introduces yet another amazing creation of theirs. This is just one, but I thought I would highlight it because I haven't had anything like it. It Candy Cane Green Tea. It is soooooo good. I am not a big fan of mint, but thought I would give it a try. Also, I can drink it guilt free, and before bed because it's decaffeinated!!!

Try it, you won't be disappointed!

We have had a tiring week, this past week. And the funny thing is we haven't really done anything. It is all because of Adah. We have always the type of people that we don't let her dictate our schedule. Not to say she doesn't have a schedule, but if I want to go hang with Jon on Friday night at Jr. High, we will do it. We strive to be flexible, yet consistent.

This last Friday night, I decided Adah and I would stay home. That way she could to bed on time, and I could get some things done around the house. By 7 o'clock, she was looking like she could go to sleep anytime. My parents came over and she almost fell asleep in her arms. This was promising, so when they left we did our bed time retinue. We got her bed ready, say and read a story, grabbed her (flavor of the month) favorite bear, and baby, and rocked for a few minutes. Then I laid her in her bed. Again, completely routine. But that night was completely different. She WOULD NOT GO TO SLEEP! I was so frustrated.

Jon got home shortly after 10, and was surprised to see her still up. Normally when he comes home late like that, he'll grab something to eat, and then we will slowly head to bed. We were up until after 11 trying to get her to sleep. It was maddening. You would expect this with a baby, but we have had smooth sailing with her and sleep for nearly 6 months, and it has been so nice.

We just thought she was having an off night, because nothing was leading us to believe she had anything wrong with her, she wasn't even really crying that hard, it was more of a whimper. Unfortunately the was the first of three nights like that where she would not go to bed. And naps were almost as hard. She would eventually nap from sheer exhaustion. She has finally settled back into her normal routine, but boy that was tiring!

Another thing that has been weird, is she all the sudden LOVES baths. Baths have been such a struggle since the day she was born. The last few months I have just showered her with me because that she can tolerate.

I don't even known when this started, but she loves them! We were at my parents house over the weekend, and she was in the bathroom with me and saw the bath. She said bath, bath, and started taking her clothes off. We were there in the morning, so she hadn't had her bath yet so I just gave it to her there.

She is growing up so fast. It's weird how I would do things for her all the time and now she is doing them herself, like feeding herself cereal in the mornings. Crazy!

I like hot chocolate, but I don't love it. I think the reason is, I'm not a fan of pouring a packet of powder in a cup and mixing it with hot water, or warm milk. So, I was so pleased when one of the blogs (Made By Lex) I follow had this recipe posted today. I hope your as eager to try it as I am! I am going to leave a few things out of it for health reasons, but the base of the recipe is pretty good, so I can only imagine the wonderful things you come it with in tweaking it. I am defiantly going to use marshmallows!

Enjoy!

I am really trying to correct a lot of things from my last pregnancy with this pregnancy. Like what I eat, going on walks to get the blood pumping (I HATE working out), resting whenever possible, the normal stuff.

But one of my least favorite things to do is drink water. I'm not a big liquid drinker in general, but I just really don't like water. I sip everything so the idea that I need to drink at the minimum 64 ounces of water a day is so overwhelming to me. Every time I guzzle down water I literally feel like I'm drowning. I would much rather have a big glass of iced tea with 2 sweet & lows. But being that I am also keeping caffeine to a minimum, that's not the best thing for me.

I have throughout my life noticed the effect the lack of liquids has on my body. My hands swell at night (pregnant or not) I get tired easily when doing strenuous thing, I don't really ever sweat dry skin, and lips. The list goes on. But all that has changed.

Around thanksgiving I heard a way not to over eat is to drink lots of water, and especially during your meal in between bites. Yes, you are probably saying, "Duh!" but I found that information quite helpful. So I put it into action.

I think I have mentioned before that we have quite a few nalgene water bottles that we use, and the thing that I like about them, is they all hold 32 ounces of water. So if you fill it and drink 2 of those, you have your daily requirement done. Being that I found the easiest way to guzzle water for me has been at room temp, I fill it (we also invested in a nice water dispenser a few years ago) up before bed, for the next morning. I drink it throughout the morning (which has also lowed the amount of coffee I drink) and when it is done I fill it to sit out for the afternoon, and drink it the second half of the day. I really try to drink it all my 6pm or I'd be going to the bathroom all night long.

Since I started this a week ago, I have noticed a few things... For starters, the first few days was horrible on my bladder, I would literally go every 5 minutes, but it's not like that anymore. I have a bit more energy which is nice. I don't feel like I have to sleep when Adah takes a nap. I am not eating out of boredom. It helps fill me up when I'm eating. I was at Starbucks today to see my mom and grandma, and I had no desire to get anything! It was amazing! I feel healthy. But, this is the biggest, and I really don't know if it has anything to do with the water drinking, but my BP at the doctors was in the normal range, and today I took it and it was 115 over 73! I haven't seen that low of a reading in a year and a half.

All the web sites I found all say the same thing about water and it's benefits. I am really hoping to keep up with this.

It was a beautiful day!

My sweet nephew Noah

I can't help but think she looks like my Dad here.

We started out with Mrs. Clause. How could you not like her?

The reason there are not very many pictures of me. No make up, no pictures.

Please don't make me see that big fat man!

This was Amanda's birthday wish, to have a family picture with Santa.

Today Was jam packed full of activities. I am so tired right now, it just about hurts. We left the house at 9:30, and didn't walk in the door until 8:30. CRAZINESS!!!

It started with a OB doctors visit. We got Adah to grandma's early, and headed out. I am ALWAYS nervous about these visits. When I was pregnant with Adah this time gestationally, I loved them! I always felt like I when I left, I knew a little more about my baby. Then 34 weeks came along, and a normal visit turned into 3 days in the hospital. So that has really affected my enjoyment level of my appointments. But this one was great! We FINALLY got to hear the baby's heartbeat, and the nurse practitioner (who I LOVE) said my uterus has moved up a bit which is excellent! We found out that we should know the sex of by the next appointment. I have a sonogram with a high risk doctor, and they should be able to find the sex of the baby with that one for sure, but if that appointment doesn't happen before my next OB appointment, they will look for us! Oh, and my blood pressure has been good PTL!

Today was also my sister in law's birthday, so as soon as we picked up Adah, we grabbed lunch and went to Disneyland. When had a great time, especially with the kids. She has a (almost) 3 year old. He and Adah get along so well, and love each other! They are finally at the age that they play together, and look forward to seeing each other. The other day when we went to visit, we pulled into the driveway, and Adah started yelling "Noah, Noah." It was the cutest thing!

After Disneyland, we headed to Claim Jumper for dinner. Adah had one of the messiest dinners, I had to change her clothes. She ate, so much and got almost as much on herself as in her tummy. My in laws couldn't believe how much she was eating, and she is only 21 pounds!

All in all, it was a great day, and I am so happy to be home with my family. Adah is in bed asleep, and we are getting ready to head that direction.

I got some great pictures, and I will post them soon!

WARNING: Due to the fact that it's late and I'm looking down the barrel of a very busy day in the morning, I am VERY sarcastic. Which is really funny, because sarcasm is one of my least favorite things about my personality, and have made a big attempt at sopping the habit. But for some reason tonight It has been unleashed!

I Am in serious need of more hours in the day. I feel like I am constantly going and I cannot seem to get ahead of things. Just keeping up, and not letting the house fall apart is a full time task. I have been up to quite a bit in my absence of blogging, but as my Mom and have said (yes, that's about the extent of my readers) I need to blog. I am going to take my Dad's advice, and blog about nothing.

Jon had a glorious 3 days off this weekend, and we both kept losing track of what day it was, but neither of us mind. We went to family functions, cleaned the house, decorated. It was really nice. We also spend alot of time with just the three of us which was also nice.

Adah is again, amazing me with her every so growing vocabulary. She was petting the dog the other day, and as I was telling her to be gentle, she blurted out,"soft" clear as a bell. She is in a completely different stage this Christmas than last. We have had to remove the ornament from her level of the tree, because she kept bringing me bulb ornaments, and saying, "ball" and then throwing them. We have had no casualties, but some close ones. Adah is in need of a haircut so badly right now, but I really don't want to cut her curls off. But seriously, a kid can only have a mullet for so long before the other 2 year old start making fun of her. : ) I am open to any advice anyone has for first haircuts. She doesn't like any strangers touching her, so this will be interesting!

I am now 16 weeks, and going to a doctor's appointment tomorrow. I am somewhat anxious about this one because I have had a tilted uterus, We haven't gotten to see the baby, which is KILLING me! I had seen Adah at least 3 times by this point, so to be almost half way though the pregnancy and only see the top of the baby's head is disappointing. The doctors said at the last appointment that it should correct itself, so I am really going to push for an ultrasound. Other than that I am feeling really good! Second trimester is seriously the best thing ever! I have more motivation to do things than when I'm not pregnant.

I am REALLY, REALLY, REALLY going to try to blog more this week. I really do have a lot of fun things to blog about. I have been making cute things, trying yummy recipes, and of coarse I need to brag, I mean tell about all the great deals we got for Black Friday!

Hope everyone has a wonderful Day!

Today is the first day of November, which means I went the entire month of October without blogging. I do have good reason... For those of you who aren't friends with me on Facebook, I am pregnant again! Today I am 12 weeks, and I just had a doctor's appointment this morning and it took FOREVER. It was the "do all the blood tests" kind of appointment. But everything went well, and we got to see the baby's heartbeat on a sonogram. That's always very cool!

Adah is talking like crazy, she comes up with a new word everyday. Her new word is "no."She has no said it in defiance yet, but when I ask her if she's done eating, she say sweetly "no." For Halloween she was Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz, she looked so good! I will post a picture soon!

One of the reasons I have been so down on blogging, is not because of feeling sick, but because of fatigue. I have been so tired, and with a very active 19 month old it has been difficult to do anything. The last week or so have been much better, and I have been working on catching up with laundry, since then.

Adah will be taking her first airplane ride on Wednesday as we travel to Seattle for the harvest crusade this weekend. I am nervous, but I think she'll do great! If not, I have my secret weapon, a lollipop. : ) Pray for our trip, and for me to not over do it.

I am planning on putting up pictures soon!

Sorry I haven't blogged much. I guess it comes with having an 18 month old. I will update soon on whats up in the Lee home, but for now I thought I would show you these great pictures! We went to a wedding recently that had this great fun booth. The pictures came out really good so I thought I would share. A big thanks to the bride (Kristin) and the groom (Brent) for providing it!

Adah started climbed in this cube and we thought it would make a good picture, and it did!

The whole idea was for them to be goofy pictures.

I think Jon totally got the idea.

And my absolute favorite... I think the picture just might be a focal point in Adah's new "big girl" room that I'm dreaming up. More on that later.

I was looking at new blog templates, and found this one. I really like it! It is very seasonal, which is what I was looking for. So I applied it to my blog, but then I noticed something. It says Happy Thanksgiving! So dont think I'm trying to get ahead of things. I'm not. But Thanksgiving will be here sooner than we know!

Adah has been growing leaps and bounds in the last few months. I am amazed even looking at her birthday pictures at how much she has changed. She is such a little talker these days.

A few months ago, I weaned Adah. It was difficult, but I knew it needed to be done; for a few reasons. She was waking up sometimes up to 4 times a night to nurse. It got to be that night time was the only time I was nursing her. She had really never slept through the night. Then the week of my grandpa's funeral I really had no choice but to wean her. I was not getting much sleep at all, and the added pressure of nursing was just too much.

So it happened in about a week. It was more traumatic on me physically, than her. But within a week she was sleeping 12+ hour stretches at night. It was the most amazing feeling to sleep at night long with out having to go nurse the baby. One night she slept from 8:15pm to 9:45am!!! It was glorious! There have been a few nights (when she has been teething) that she has woken up, but all she wants is to be held for a few minutes, but as little as she likes to be held, I don't mind one bit.

Another thing Adah has been doing is displaying signs of being ready to be potty trained. I know your thinking she is too young, I have felt the same way, but it is obvious sings she is ready. She has been taking off her diaper, so I got her pull-up (they are soooo big on her) and have had her in only the pull-ups during the day. She has been telling me "potty," before she goes in her diaper. She even told me she needed to go "poo poo," then she went in the potty.

When I first got out her princess potty that I had gotten as a gift for my baby shower, she was so excited! I got it out the night before, and when she woke up the next morning she saw it and thought it was a new toy. I took off her diaper and had her sit on the potty naked, and I turned on the water in the bathroom to get her going. Well, she started going and as soon as the liquid it the potty bowl, the little song came on, and Adah got so scared, she ran off mid stream. TMI, I'm sorry.

I am taking the whole process really slow, but she is doing so well, we will just keep it up until she is completely potty trained.

I LOVE baby things! It's not just because I have a baby (well, not so much a baby anymore) but because of the creativity that takes place when you have a baby. It forces you to be creative.

Whenever I have a baby shower to go to, I start thinking about what I can make for the baby. I was recently invited to a baby shower for a dear friend that I could not attend, but I went ahead and made a few things for here.

Tell me what you think...

The Car Seat Canopy

The Nursing Cover

Yes, I used my sister as a model.

My friend is having a boy, but I couldn't help putting ruffles on it.

This is Shadow, the newest member of the Lee family. Shadow is a pure bred Golden Retriever. I'm sure most of you saw on Facebook that Jon surprised me (on the day of my grandpa's funeral) with a puppy. Well, we got Emma (Shadow's litter mate) a about two weeks, but ended up trading her for Shadow, it's a long story. I was really having a hard time, but I LOVE Shadow, and he is going to be a great dog!

And yes, that is mischief written all over his face!

One of our favorite restaurants to go to as a family is the Cheesecake Factory! I went there for the first time at fashion island in Newport for my 15th birthday. I don't remember much about that day but I do remember being seated next to the window on a beautiful clear day. If you have ever been to that particular spot, you know you can see the ocean and sometimes as far as a neighboring islands.

It quickly became one of our favorite restaurants, and place we would go for a date or celebratory dinner. Jon and I were thrilled when we found out that one was going in here in Riverside a few years back!

I don't tend to stick with one thing I like to try new things on the menu. But Jon LOVES the Louisiana Chicken Pasta, he orders that EVERY time we go. I have tried and tried to get the recipe for it with no avail, until this week.

I just randomly googled it as I have in the past, but this time I found a recipe that looked like it could fit the bill, and I think it did! So, here it is...

I got the recipe from recipesecret.com from one of their forums.

For the pan fried chicken:

4 tablespoons vegetable oil
6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
3/4 cup breadcrumbs
1/4 cup parmesan cheese (grated)
1 cup milk
2 tablespoons flour

For the Cajun Sauce

1 tablespoon butter
1 small yellow pepper (chopped)
1 small red bell pepper (chopped)
3/4 small red onion (chopped)
3 whole garlic cloves (minced)
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1-1/4 pints whipping cream
1 cup low sodium chicken broth
4 tablespoons fresh basil (thinly sliced)
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 (12 ounce) package bow tie pasta
1 cup mushroom (sliced)

Melt butter in large skillet over medium heat.

Add yellow and red bell peppers, mushrooms, and onion to same skillet,until
crisp-tender, about 4 minute.

Add garlic and crushed red pepper to skillet and saute 3 minutes.

Add whipping cream and chicken stock.

Simmer until sauce re-heats and thickens slightly, about 5 minutes. (I let it "hang out" longer. It gave the sauce its signature color)

Add basil (I didn't have any. oops)and 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese to sauce, stirring to
incorporate.

Season sauce to taste with salt and pepper.(This is important because the cheese adds the salty flavor by itself, and you run the risk of over salting if you salt before the cheese) Reduce heat to low, simmer;
sauce will reduce and thicken.

Start the water for the bow-tie pasta

Cook bow-tie pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until
tender but still firm to bite.

Drain and return to pot.

Wash and drain chicken breasts.

Pound until very thin (the thinner the chicken breasts the better).

Mix breadcrumbs, flour, and Parmesan cheese together.

Place milk in dish for dipping.

Dip chicken in breadcrumb mixture and then in milk and then back in
breadcrumbs.

Place in fry pan that the oil has been heated and fry at medium high
temperature until golden crisp and cooked through.

Add more oil as needed.

Remove and drain chicken; keep warm.

Add sauce to the pasta and toss to coat.

Place pasta with sauce on plate, and top with chicken breast.

Serve, passing additional Parmesan separately.

Serves 5 to 7

Enjoy!

Oh, and isn't the cheesecake factory's website freaky??? Yes- I do look at the links before I post them... <3>

My brother, and his girlfriend Carlie, took Adah to Disneyland on Monday night. They documented they trip with their iPhone and sent us updates throughout the night. This is what they sent...

We are here, and She's excited!

California Adventure

On a bugs life ride

Eating a toddler meal

Cuddling on Pirates

On our way to the tram. We had so much fun!

Pooped out after a fun night. Thank you Uncle, and Carlie!

I am so glad this worked out and they all had a fun time. This also gave Jon and I a "night off."

This has taken me a while to write all this out. This is more for me to rehash things and take it in. Thank you for listening... : )

It has been almost 3 weeks since my grandpa passed away, and a little over a week since he was buried. For a while it really felt like all our lives were on hold while he was on hospice. Just waiting. It went a little like this...

On Tuesday, July 13th we (Mom, Adah, Jon, and myself) went to see my grandparents for lunch. When we got there things with my grandpa were different, not bad, but different. He was really weepy, and was having a hard time communicating, and eating. That's not entirely unusual considering he was on dialysis twice a week, and that was very tiring to him. So we just had a fairly normal day visiting.

By the weekend he was in the hospital and was having a very hard time speaking, and doing much of anything. He would sleep most of the day, wake up briefly, and know who you were, and try his hardest to tell you he loved you, but still drift in and out. The doctor was pretty confident that his body was shutting down. On Saturday, the 17th, they decided it was time to have hospice brought in. Being that his kidney function was only at about 6% at this point, he wouldn't be on hospice long.

On Monday, the 19th he was brought home, and between all of us that was there when he was home, there was an excitement that I cant explain. Yes, we knew he was going to die, but he was at home surrounded by the family he loved. It was a treasure.

I went home Monday night and my Mom stayed to care for him. Tuesday Jon and I didn't make it out because of a jr. high event that Jon and Adam had to lead, but nothing had really changed, so we felt confident going.

Wednesday, I went with the intention of spending 1 maybe 2 nights. When we got there, my Dad had warned me that the atmosphere was very somber because he had really woken up at all. We got there around 6pm, and around 7 he really woke up for about 2 hours. He would try to smile, and make gestures that he would always do when we were kids. While Adah was in the room talking to him, he looked at her and brought two fists up like a boxer, and smiled at her really big. That was the most memorable thing he did while he was at home because for a brief moment, he snapped into himself, with his playful personality. He went to sleep around 9 as did the rest of us, and he never really woke up after that. He went into a coma like state.

Like I said, I was planning on staying there 2 nights tops, but as the time went by, we knew he would be leaving us soon, so 2 nights turned into 5. Friday is when his breaths because really labored.

We all thought that he was going to pass Saturday July 24, we were all there and ate his favorite thing for dinner. In N out. The whole experience a process that we wanted to glorify the Lord, and its funny how the enemy really doesn't want to see that happen. I won't go into detail, but a family member (not direct) was really being used by the enemy. It was really hard but our focus was on serving Papa until he was taken home.

Sunday morning Jon and Adam went to work, and we all had a pleasant morning. My grandparents neighbors (who have been real true neighbors with their hospitality) came over, and we all listened to Pastor Greg's message. It was July 25, and for those of you who don't know, July 24, 2008 was the day his son Christopher went to heaven, so that was really on his mind. His message really touched on dying and heaven. Papa could hear it because they were in the room listening to it. Then the message was over and Revive played Welcome to Eternity. A few minutes later he took his last breath. It was so peaceful.

It was really a very hard almost week, and I am so glad I was there. No regrets!

"He passed liked he lived, very quietly." -Peggy Colley (my grandma)

Well, we are still at Papa's bedside, and are trying to make his as comfortable as possible. We are all sticking around my grandparents house, with the exception of those who have to go to work, but even that has been very flexible.

My Mom has been here since Monday, and I have been here since Wednesday. We just try to make things as normal as possible. Adah is being extremely cooperative considering she has been away from home for so long, and is not in her "normal" routine. She has been a nice distraction.

We are cherishing this time we have with him knowing that he is going to meet Jesus soon.

Update: As I was typing this, I was called into his room by my dad. He took his last breath and was very peaceful. I am so thankful for this week (almost) that we had with him at home, with all the people he loves. God is good!

Oscar Colley, on his 90th birthday

I haven't been able to post in a while because my family is in the midst of caring for my grandpa (Papa) who is home on hospice. This has been especially difficult for my mom, who has been at their house since Monday to be by his side.

In one week he went having the ability to talk and move, to being bedridden and unable to speak or move. The doctor says his body is shutting down, and that we have about 10-15 days with him. He has said one phrase words under his breath, but he cannot tell us what he wants, but you can see in his eyes he is there. He will try to say "I love you," but it takes about every ounce of energy out of him.

The sad reality is we will not have him with us much longer, his quiet, gentle temperament will be greatly missed. But the truth is that he knows Christ, and will see Him soon, and us again. That truth gives us great peace in see him leave his tired old body.

Please keep our family in prayer, as we interact with family members, that we be a light. Please keep my mom in prayer as she cares for him. This is very hard for her as they have always had a special relationship.

We had a great 4th... How was yours?

We recently got the opportunity to see the new "World of Color" water show at Disneyland. We went because it was the last day of our passes being available for the Summer, and we had to see the show everyone has been raving about. I was a little bit nervous because we got Fastpasses for the 11:15pm show! Having a baby with a regular bedtime between 8 and 9 is really a way to ruin an evening. But Adah did great! She fell asleep at about 7pm and slept until almost 9. She ate a bit of dinner, and we watch the fire work show, then headed to The World of Color.

It was by far the BEST water, light show I have ever seen! It had effects that I had never seen before. It blew all other shows we have seen out of the water. Literally. The Colors were amazing, and it made me want to watch all the older Disney movies like Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, The little Mermaid, and The Lion King.

I highly, highly recommend you see this show. You will have to get there somewhat early, but it is really worth the wait!

My dad is a big Keen shoes fan. So when Adah was born they immediately started looking for baby Keens. Unfortunately, the smallest size they come in is 3. So we had to wait a while for her to fit in them.

I was happy that she got a pair just because they are cute, but I didn't realize how practical they are! They are the toddler wonder shoe. They stay on, they are waterproof, and they don't look like they are shoes she wares everyday. Plus, they are sandals but protect their toes. They are a bit expensive for baby shoes ($40-50) but well worth the money!

These are the pink ones Adah got.

They come in a wide variety of colors and styles.

This is a couple days late, but not any less meaningful! Adah has the best daddy, and he deserves to be celebrated!

He loved his daughter before he knew her

Meeting her for the first time

Visiting at the office

He's a great nap buddy

A day at the beach

Just splashing around

We love you daddy... You are the best daddy to your girls. We couldn't ask for anyone better...

Happy Fathers day!!!

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