2 weeks

Leah is 2 weeks old...man how time flies :) We are still surviving...really nothing new to report. I refer to it as groundhog day around here...eat, sleep, potty and repeat x million! But we are loving every minute of it (almost anyways!) Here are a few pretty typical pictures of Leah!

Week One Down...

 We have survived the first week...ok the first 11 days and I must admit I am proud of Mark and I. It has been crazy, but we have managed with few meltdowns and arguments! Leah is doing awesome. She is a little oinker because all she wants to do is EAT and EAT and EAT! Which means all I have been doing is breastfeeding! That is one thing that has caught me off Gard- the amount of time I would spend feeding and pumping. Especially when a baby wants to eat every hour and half! BUT, I think Leah's tank is getting full as she is about every 2-3 hours now with an occasional 4 hour stretch! I am getting plenty of milk and adjusting to having sore boobs :) We have had tons of visitors-how blessed we are to have such great family and friends. I am handling the lack of sleep better then I thought I would! Between naps and the occasional 4 hour stretch I am managing!

Leah is a hoot! She already has an attitude like her mom! She is happiest in the mornings after a long snooze and large breakfast! She is a bit grouchy from 5-8pm, lots of walking and bouncing. She doesn't really like her swing yet, but we are working on it. She has taken a few bottles which is good thing and only likes her one paci! She is enjoyed her first bath at home, until we had to take her out of the warm water! She is sleeping in the pack n play in our room, we tried putting her in her crib last night, that lasted about 5 minutes. She was asleep when we put her down, then she woke right up and was wide awake laying the dark- too hard for daddy to stand! We will try again later this week! We had our first pediatrician appointment and she is back up to her birth weight already (oink oink)!! Overall we are doing well...it has been an adjustment to say the least! I will post some pictures soon! Thanks for all the calls, texts, visits and meals :)

Leah Hazel Franklin

Mark and I welcomed Leah Hazel Franklin Friday September 16, 2011 at 9:04. She was 6lbs 7oz and 19in long. She shares a birthday with her Dad- how amazing is that! Leah is perfectly healthy and we feel so blessed, no words to describe. We are surviving our first week at home, it has had its rough point but we are managing. Leah is a doll, all she wants to do is eat so that is all we are doing.  Here are a few pictures and short video. Ok, time for this momma to go take a nap!

Comfort Food

So since I am done with work and just waiting patiently for Baby Franks to decide to come, I have been cooking up a storm.  I guess because it is the only thing I feel like I have control over. Or maybe the fact that I am using food as time passer by right now...details details!  I tried this on a whim tonight. It was easy and hit the spot with our food on the grill! Mac and cheese on the stove was good but I prefer baked for a little crunch, but I didnt plan that far ahead.  I got the recipe from THIS blog...give it a try!

PS I am 38 + 5 and headed to OBGYN tomorrow...Im praying for an immediate admit to L & D...Hey a girl can dream can't she!

Complete Randomness

Saturday morning at the Franklin household...Mark is trying to squeeze in every minute of golf he can and I am trying to think about anything besides Baby Franks and the schoolwork I should be doing. If you know me at all one of my biggest weaknesses is patience and boy I am getting a big lesson in this currently. I had a rough night on Thursday, up all night with contractions, I was thinking THIS IS IT, but no, after being up all night, the contractions slowed in the morning and eventually stopped. I got extremely frustrated with this waiting game and was annoyed with everything! 24 hours later and a night of decent sleep, I am taking a step back and realizing I need to be patient. It is hard to accept the fact that I have NO control over this situation and I just have to be patient. Umm hello, baby Franks do you know who you mother is?! She does not handle lack of control or being patient very well!  I guess you are trying to teach me before you get here that you will be in control the rest of my life. I appreciate this, but it would be much easier to learn if I could see your face and know who you are, just take that into consideration as you are devising your plan to enter the world. Thank you very much!

In other news, fall has begun to show its face around here. The weather is cooling, football started last weekend, it is beginning to take over the blogging world and I must admit I AM EXCITED. Fall is my favorite season of all. I talked to one of my best friends this week who coaches basketball at BSU, she was sharing about how pre season workouts started, study tables, and funny freshman stories. It made me a bit nostalgic for my BSU college days. Being so exhausted during the week from workouts, but come Saturday morning hosting the best tailgates and drinking socializing all day and night, Sunday morning breakfasts and then hitting the library all day. Ahh, those were the days. This fall will be a bit different, but I know it will still be full of football, good food, studying (boo!) and much less drinking :)

So I will leave you with some lyrics from a Kenny Chesney song...this is my current life motto...

It's my life and it's sure fun
Another season of my life's begun
Another race I'm glad I get to run
Another chapter of my life I'm writin'
No I'm never gonna feel like this again
Time's rushin' by me like the wind
Gotta grab each moment that I can
Cause I'm never gonna feel like this again

Nursery and things...



Instead of pictures of the nursery, I decided to re-aquaint myself with our FLIP video camera, so I will know how to use when Baby Franks arrives. Hope this works and hope you like!

Stuffed Bell Peppers

I have made these before, but this was a new recipe I tried. Let me tell you, I will be using this recipe again...it was delicious and simple. I ended up only having 3 peppers on hand, but saved the left over filling for lunches and what not. These were very good, peppers cooked perfectly and filling was flavorful!

This recipe is from Simple Recipes and called Dad's Stuffed Peppers!

courtesy of simply recipes

37 and some change...

I am 37 weeks and a few days...A big milestone because 37 weeks is considered term. I would feel completely comfortable if Baby Franks decided to enter the world. 3 weeks seems so far away so I have been having daily discussions with Baby Franks about all the reasons they should decide to meet us. I have mentioned that Mark and I are nice people, we have lots of fun baby things for it to use, we want to know whether we can call "he" or "she" instead of "it" or other nicknames we and others have used, we have a very annoying nice dog who wants to know what the heck is going on around here, football season here and we know you will love it, mommy's clothes are starting to get really tight, you have 6 cousins to meet...etc etc...But NO, Baby Franks does not like any of those reasons currently and trying to reason with an unborn baby is making me look like a crazy lady. I know little one will arrive when they are ready and we just need to be patient, but it is HARD! I am praying for patience everyday, it is not something I am good at. I have been feeling fairly good, slowing down a lot, spurts of extreme exhaustion, then energy, spurts of extreme happiness and then extreme meltdowns (I am hoping this is normal!)I truly have no reason to complain so I will leave it at that. Hopefully I will have time to post some nursery pictures this week!

30 weeks

34 weeks

Here I am at 37 weeks in all my glory! Sorry my bed isn't made!

MMMM....FOOD!!

So I tried out these new recipes this week and they were both great!

From Annies Eats these Baked Southwestern Egg Rolls were surprisingly easy and delicious. I just used store bought salsa, but homemade salsa would probably be even better! I might make another batch this week and freeze them!

Also I made this Cream Cheese Chocolate Chip Dip...it is really good for you :)

From Taste of Home

Ingredients

• 1 package (8 ounces) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese (softened or cubed), softened
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 3/4 cup confectioners' sugar
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup (6 ounces) miniature semisweet chocolate chips
• Graham cracker sticks

Directions

• In a small bowl, beat cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. Add the sugars and vanilla; beat until smooth. Stir in chocolate chips. Serve with graham cracker sticks. Yield: 2 cups.