This Stay At Home Momma

Hello, hello! Sorry it's been so long since my last post. There have been so many things going on lately that I just haven't had time to sit down at the computer and update you all.  The biggest part is that we have moved! We are now in our own place instead of sharing a house with another family. We have a beautiful, big yard and the house is much bigger which gives Abby a lot more space to run and play.  The living room is my favourite room in the house. I love how much room Abby and the dogs have to run and play outside. I have been slowly tackling all the unpacking and cleaning that has come along with this new place. It was not in the greatest shape when we moved in so it's been a BIG job. Hanging blinds/curtains, washing walls, cleaning baseboards, installing light fixtures, installing a new dishwasher, fixing the oven....the list goes on and on. We also have a separate suite on the side of the house and it has boxes to unpack in it as well a...

Praise the Lord! I am SO excited to share with you all that Julia has the great majority of her hearing!! We made our way to BC Children's Hospital this morning and let me tell you - it was a bit of an ordeal... The test was slotted for 9am until noon. Yes, THREE full hours. Julia needed to be sleeping for the test so we were given instructions on how to prepare ahead of time. Julia woke up at 6 am this morning so I fed her and then she needed to stay awake until her appointment. I'm not sure about you, but have you ever had a baby stay awake on a long car ride? Yeah. It doesn't happen (at least not my children!). So I enlisted Mom Wookey to come along with me. She sat in the back with Julia and every time she tried to nod off to dreamland she was rubbed with an ice cold cloth. Let's just say that she was NOT a happy camper! Poor grandma felt bad, Julia cried the whole time, but in the end it totally paid off. We arrived to our appointment and got set up. Julia ha...

Hey everyone. Sorry it's been so long since my last post...life around here has been extra busy! On December 13th, 2014 we welcomed our second daughter, Julia Anne Wookey, to the family. She was born weighing 9lbs 1oz and measuring 23 inches long. I knew she would be a big girl - we don't make small babies. Labor and delivery went well. I started having contractions around 9am on the 12th and they steadily got stronger. Chad and I headed to the hospital around dinner time. The nurses monitored me and baby's heart rate for quite some time; Julia's pattern for her heart rate was a bit abnormal during my contractions so they wanted to keep an eye on it. We had the exact same scenario happen during my labor with Abby and in the end they decided to admit me and then the fun began. I labored all through the evening and eventually succumbed to the pain. I asked for an epidural and they also gave me some laughing gas while the anesthesiologist made his way to my room. ...

Less than THREE weeks until Christmas! How exciting! Along with the season comes decorating, gift buying, and my favourite - baking! We have some pretty long standing items that get made every Christmas. Without them I sort of feel like it wouldn't quite be Christmas time....so I've been on top of my game this year so I have things ready to go for when baby #2 decides to show up. My tree is decorated, all my Christmas gifts and stocking stuffers have been bought, and I'm half way through my baking. (Last week I could have said two-thirds done my baking buuuuut I ate a whole bunch so I have to make some more!) Yesterday Chad went to his Christmas party - I didn't go since we had to put our names onto the guest list quite early and I really, really hoping to have this baby in my arms already (oh well...) - so I kept myself occupied with cookie decorating. I love that ziploc bags double as piping bags so I decided to go a little fancier than a bowl of icing a...

Anyone else getting all geared up for Christmas?? I am! I have gifts for everyone but two people on my list. That makes me feel oh so good. We pulled out the Christmas tree and decorations this weekend, too, so now I get to spend the next month decorating and re-decorating each time my toddler decides to grab the pretty, shiny things. Lol!  We also pulled out Abby's nativity scene already in hopes of it being a distraction from everything else....but sparkling tree ornaments, stuffed snowmen, and lights are far more exciting for her. So this weekend I made a big roast beef dinner. I have had nothing but good things said about it so I wanted to share it with you all! I always go "all out" and prepare roast beef, mashed potatoes, peas and carrots, gravy, and Yorkshire pudding. It's Chad's ultimate favorite meal. I'm getting more comfortable with the major multitasking that is required so it's quite satisfying to make! Don't mind the balle...

Ever wonder what to do with too many chili peppers? Not exactly a common problem I suppose, but I found myself in this situation a few days ago. I finally pulled my peppers off the plants on my patio and was wondering why the heck I thought buying three pepper plants was a good idea. I got the plants for 25 cents each and didn't have any clue how much they would produce so, heck, for 75 cents it was worth the experiment. Next time I may only buy two plants though! I used up what I could during my day to day cooking but when I'm feeding a toddler I can only add so many hot peppers! I decided to experiment a little and make some homemade chili oil. Basically you take your chili peppers and let them soak in olive oil. That's it! So easy. Some websites recommended using dried chilies instead of fresh, but I wasn't really in the mood to dehydrate them in my oven for many, many hours so I opted for fresh chilies instead. We had some friends over for dinner t...

I got lucky with a new recipe this past week. I took it out of an old Company's Coming cookbook that I was given at my wedding. It came from my Oma's collection of cookbooks. She passed away many years ago, but my Aunt passed along some of her cookbooks to me as a wedding gift. It's a vegetarian dish - which usually means that Chad endures the meal but doesn't thoroughly enjoy it. But this time he took seconds! AND commented that it was good. WIN! Other than chopping up the veggies it was so simple to prepare and had such simple ingredients. It was quite pretty with all the different colors of veggies mixed together and I'm sure the crushed crackers and baked cheese on top helped as well. Here's the recipe: Rice Veggie Casserole Company's Coming: Meatless Cooking 1 medium onion, chopped 1 cup sliced celery 19 oz. canned tomatoes, drained, chopped, drained again 2 tsp. chili powder 1 green pepper, seeded and chopped ...