Tuesday Night Recipe

Eclair Cake-This is super yummy and easy!!!

Cake:
1 (1-pound) box graham crackers
2 (3 1/4-ounce) boxes instant French vanilla pudding
3 1/2 cups milk
1 (8-ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed

Frosting
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup cocoa
3 tablespoons butter, softened
1/4-1/3 cup milk (to reach desired consistency)
2 teaspoons light corn syrup
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Butter the bottom of a 13 by 9 by 2-inch pan. Line with whole graham crackers. In bowl of an electric mixer, mix pudding with milk; beat at medium speed for 2 minutes. Fold in whipped topping. Pour half the pudding mixture over graham crackers. Place another layer of whole graham crackers on top of pudding layer. Pour over remaining half of pudding mixture and cover with another layer of graham crackers.

For frosting, blend together sugar and cocoa. Add butter and milk, mixing well. Add corn syrup and vanilla. Stir until creamy. Cover cake with frosting and refrigerate for 24 hours.

Recipe Courtesy of: Paula Deen

Here is what this website thinks little Cara Lynn will look like....I beg to differ.

What do you think about my little new baby Cara Lynn?
MakeMeBabies.com - What will your baby look like?

Cute Pics of Ethan

Ethan decided yesterday that he wanted to cooperate with us and take a cute pic and then again today I got lucky and got another cute picture....So I thought I would share. Also he has gotten into the whole "dressing up" thing....he loves to put on my high heels, daddy's ties, hats, etc. He thinks it is soo funny, and really it does look quite hysterical.






Here is picture of me at 8 months preggo....only 1 month to go!!! Hallelujah! I really do love being pregnant, but I am getting quite uncomfortable now.

Every Tuesday night I have started baking something sweet for me and my fellow nurses to enjoy while working hard. :-) I have gotten alot of requests for recipes, so I am going to start posting them on my blog. Here is one that I made last week that was oh so yummy! Enjoy.


Oatmeal Fudge Bars Recipe

* 1 cup butter
* 2 cups brown sugar
* 2 eggs
* 1-2 teaspoons vanilla
* 2 1/2 cups flour
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1 1/2 cups quick-cooking oats (or old-fashioned)

Fudge

* 1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
* 12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
* 1/4 cup butter
* 1 teaspoon vanilla
* 1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Directions

1.Grease a 9x13 baking pan; set aside.
2.In a large bowl cream butter and sugar; add eggs and vanilla.
3.In a small bowl, sift flour, baking soda, and salt; add to creamed mixture. Mix in oats.
4. In a heavy saucepan, mix sweetened condensed milk, chocolate chips, and butter; heat just until melted. Stir in vanilla and nuts if using.
5.Spread 2/3 of the oatmeal dough (will be stiff) into prepared baking pan. Spread with chocolate mixture. Drop remaining 1/3 of dough on top by spoonfuls.
6.Bake at 350°F for 25 minutes. Allow to cool completely (if you cut them while they are still warm at all they will be gooey and fall apart), then cut into bars.

July 4th-Family Reunion

Every year on July 4th we go go to a family reunion (Mom's side of family) in south Georgia...this year was no exception, but it was a little different than previous years. The difference was I had my little tot (Ethan, of course) with me. Ethan had a rough time at the reunion, which in turn, meant Andy and I had a rough time. He could not go to sleep at night and could not take a nap during the day because of all the people around (75+ people in one cabin with 2 large areas to sleep)....this made for a very fussy child. Also, he wanted to be outside with all the other children the whole time, so my husband and I mainly socialized with each other and the rest of the children. Don't get me wrong, I love children, but I would have also liked to have a little more social interaction with adults that I have not seen in a year. So, we will have to see if we are brave enough to go again next year....hopefully it will be better. We have already decided that if we go, we will most definately stay in a hotel close by so that our children can at least sleep.

Here are some pics of the reunion. Not the best family portraits, but we tried.







Summertime Saturday Afternoons

Most Saturday's this summer Andy has set aside time to do yardwork (mow, edge, de-weed, etc). This has turned out to be a family affair. Ethan insists on being outside with Andy the whole time. This is probably Ethan's favorite time of the week. He loves to watch daddy mow the lawn and he will even help pick weeds. My job is to just watch the little squirt and make sure he is not getting in Andy's way...tyically, a very easy job! Here is a pic of Ethan intently watching dad mow.



Skinny Ankles!!!! Yippee!!!

I have to post this picture of my ankles because I am so excited to see them again...for the past couple of months my lower legs have been swelling, and I have not been able to see my ankle bones. Because of the swelling and varicose veins the Dr. recommended compression hose and they are working like a charm. I wear them to work and instead of coming home with fat ankles, they are smaller than when I left for work. Thank heavens for little favors.

Out of Love....didn't last long!

Well, I received my bedding that I thought "I Loved", but I don't. The pictures were way better than the real thing. The quality of the fabric was not as good as I would like or thought it would be. So, the bedding is being returned and I am on a hunt to find some cute pink/brown bedding. My husband says he does not support this venture, since I already have bought some Ladybug bedding that he thinks will do just fine (I am going to return it also. :-) ).....but now I am really stuck on the pink/brown theme and want to find something in those colors. So, wish me luck, because I really need to make a decision quick so we can do the baby room before she gets here.

Kenny Chesney Concert

Yesterday we went to the Kenny Chesney Concert "Poets and Pirates Tour" at Turner Field. In the 7 years that I have been with my husband, this is the first time we have gone to a concert together!! I know, that is really saying something about our social life, or the lack thereof. Part of the reason is, we are cheap and concerts are quite expensive...We got these tickets for free from a customer of Legacy's who works for 94.9 The Bull. We had alot of fun and it was good to see my husband in that sort of element, singing and dancing and carefree. We saw some really good artist, i.e. Gary Allan, LeAnn Rimes, Sammy Hagar (could have done without, but Andy loved him), Brooks and Dunn, and of course Kenny Chesney. It was an all day affair, so my parents watched the little monster for us. So, it really was a stress free day! My brother Bryan and his wife Sarah also got tickets for free, so they were there with us, which was cool.

Since, this was a rare occasion for us, I insisted on a t-shirt and my husband gladly obliged. Now I have proof that I have been to a cool concert at least once in my life. :-)

The only mishap of the day, was "The Fall". I should preface this by saying that it rained quite a bit before we got there so there were alot of wet and slick spots on the ground. I was in a hurry on my way to the restroom (which, I frequented alot being 7 months pregnant) and lost my footing and face first. Luckily, I caught myself with my hands and knees before my belly hit the ground. It was quite embarrassing and even sad because no one even stopped to help me up. Oh well. I was just glad that I did not hurt myself or my baby.

Here are a couple of pics of our big day out.

I'm In Love!!!

No, I have not found a new man :-)...Andy and Ethan are still the loves of my life.

I have found the cutest crib bedding for Cara...I actually already bought a 6-piece set, but found another set that is way cuter and cheaper and it has 9-pieces!! I bid for it on ebay today and won it for $100.00. I am so excited to start the baby's room now! (I have to thank my sister for this find, because we were looking for her when I came upon this bedding)

Here is a pic of the new bedding.... I think for the walls we are going to do a light pink on the top half and a chocolate brown on the bottom half with a chair rail in the middle. What do ya'll think??