Roasted Green Bean Not-so-casserole

Thanksgiving is less than a week away! That means its time for menu planning and recipe choosing.

Every Thanksgiving I was in charge of green bean casserole--in all of its creamy, cheesy goodness.

Ever since having a baby and breastfeeding, I have had to start watching what I eat. I am still working on losing some baby weight, and we discovered Lucy has trouble digesting any dairy products through my milk.

Cows milk products can cause some babies to be extremely fussy and gassy. So gassy in fact, that they have trouble actually burping or getting the gas out. So I cut dairy out of my diet. {Which is sad. Very sad.} But when you have a screaming baby who you can tell has a terrible little tummy ache, you will eat only cardboard for the rest of your breastfeeding life if it will make them happy!

So I have had "fun" trying to find dairy-free but delicious substitutes for my favorite meals.

If you are going low fat or dairy-free this Thanksgiving, these roasted Green Beans with bacon and caramelized onions will not disappoint. They are roasty and delicious with flavors of roasted garlic, nutmeg and mushrooms {which are missing from the pics, because the husband detests mushrooms and I have to cook them on the side}. This is true love people.

Roasted Green bean Bacon and Garlic Not-so-casserole
1 lb snipped and cleaned green beans
1/4 red onion, thinly sliced
2 slices of crispy cooked bacon, diced
4 cloves of garlic, thickly diced
1 tsp nutmeg
salt and pepper, to taste
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
4 cremeni mushrooms, thinly sliced (not shown)

Preheat oven to 425. Toss green beans, bacon onions, garlic and mushrooms in olive oil, nutmeg, salt, pepper and Worcestershire sauce. Bake at 425 for 15-20 minutes until onions are caramelized and green beans are soft (but not mushy) and not longer crisp.

What is your family's go-to veggie for Thanksgiving?

How great is the goodness you have stored up for those who fear you.
You lavish it on those who come to you for protection, blessing them before the watching world.  Psalm 31:19

Thankful for...

Passy's!

Everyone told me that you can try every passy on the market and your baby will end up picking the one they like.

Well, we were beginning to think Lucy was just NOT a passy kind of gal. Every one we tried she scrunched up her face and spit out or gagged on.

We were okay with life without a passy because that meant we wouldn't have to break her of it in the future. But, passys come in handy when driving or shopping and when you have a fussy baby who is having trouble settling down for her nap. So we kept trying...

Then, I remembered a passy we had in this adorable corsage my aunt made me for my baby shower, full of baby socks and a passy and ribbon. (Seriously adorable-my friends suggested she sell them.)

And lo and behold...its her absolute favorite. When I asked where it was from so I could grab some more, my mom told me it was from the dollar store.

So at 2/$1 little Lucy is in love with her fashionable but thrifty binkys.

And she feels glad. And thankful.

Thankful for...

The holidays are approaching, the holidays are approaching!!

And there is nothing that could make this new mom and little baby happier.

With Thanksgiving next week, I plan on sharing some recipes {if I can ever find time to cook.}

In the meantime, I will share what I am thankful for.

Today, I am thankful for Aden & Anis Swaddle blankets. We seriously use these every day. Get them for your prego friends. They will want to hug your neck.

 They are thin and soft, and stylish, so they keep baby warm and swaddled up cozy.

Plus they make great car seat blankets.

I'm also thankful for skinny trees {which are SO in this year.} And sisters. And decorating skinny trees on November 12th.

Month 1 favorites

I loved reading other blogs with favorites new moms couldn't live without...so, here are my top 5 must-haves for month one:

Rock N' Play Sleeper. We originally had a different bassinet/moses basket which was flat. Lucy kept spitting up all over herself and was very restless in the flat bassinet. After reading a zillion reviews about how people were getting 4-5 hours of sleep with this sleeper, I was determined to try it out. This is awesome! It sits right beside our bed and cradles baby so she barely notices when we put her down. If she wakes in the night I can lean over and rock her a little and she will often settle back to sleep. And we have gotten 4-5 hour stretches of sleep now that we have the rock & play! I've also set this up in the bathroom while taking a shower and blowdrying my hair and she is happy as a little clam in the sleeper!

Boppy Pillow: This pillow is essential to breastfeeding. It helps with positioning and a comfortable spot for baby to doze while nursing. It is also an awesome prop for little ones who want to hold the baby.  I recommend one for each floor of your house. I only had one the first few weeks, but thanks to my wonderful friends, I now have a second one in our bedroom. Now I don't have to tote it upstairs with us every night when we go to bed!

Vibrating Baby bouncer: This is a great little seat to clip baby into while you are cooking, watching TV, etc in the house. It has toys for her to look at, it vibrates and plays music, and if she dozes off for her afternoon nap and starts getting restless, it bounces! We use this every day.

Medela Pump in Style with Tote: This pump is great! It is on the pricey side, but I read a lot of reviews that it is excellent for those going back to work, as it is efficient at pumping both sides at once. I got the hands-free bra to go with it (so you can actually do things with your hands while pumping). It's not loud, it doesn't hurt, and it comes with all of the bottles and things you need to pump. I've started preparing my supply for going back to work, and hubby has even gotten a chance to give the baby a bottle too! 

Zippered Onesies: Lucy has lived in these since day one. We put a little short-sleeved undershirt under to keep her warm, they cover her feet, and they are easy to zip up in the middle of the night (no trying to line snaps up while you are half asleep changing a diaper!) 

What were your favorite one-month items?

" I have loved you with an everlasting love." Jer 31:3

Happy 1 month & a birth story

One month ago, {yesterday} me and the husband went to the hospital for the 2nd night in a row, with contractions 4 minutes apart. We had been sent home the night before because "I was smiling too much" and my contractions weren't "bad enough yet".

We arrived at the hospital very punctually on our due date 9/25/12 at 2:00am in the morning, in full fledged [back] labor. When they checked my cervix and said I was still only a 1 or 2 cm, I could have cried. Luckily my amazing doctor felt my contractions on my stomach and saw how much pain I was in and decided to admit me. Bless her, bless her, bless her.

By 7am I kindly pleaded for an epidural. My hubby was in charge of rubbing my back every 2 minutes for an entire minute, and at that rate, I knew we would both be worn out! Thankfully I had the best L&D nurse Jenny, who did everything possible to accommodate us, and the best anesthesiologist a girl could ask for, my pain went from an 8-9 without the epidural to a ZERO with. Yep. Praise the Lord above for the person who invented epidurals.

By 9am I was 5 cm and they had broken my water. My contractions strangely enough slowed down, a little pitocin was administered, we visited with family and hung out all day, and we were ready to push by 2pm.

My sweet sister, husband, mom, mother-in-law and nurse Jenny prayed over the baby in my belly before we started pushing. Straight from their lips to God's ears, sweet Lucy Mae was born 51 minutes later at 2:51pm.

I couldn't have asked for a better birth story and a better L&D nurse, and obstetrician. My hubby cut the cord and I truly fell in love with him all over again, the day I saw the look on his face the moment our daughter was born.

As we welcomed our new Lucy home, our family and friends surrounded us with food, snuggles for Lucy, naps, and even chances to dash out of the house to get some sanity. We even got to go out on a date for our anniversary.

We now have a 1 month old baby, who can hold her head up pretty well, smile beautifully when you coo and sing at her, can drink from a bottle {of pumped milk}, has pitifully had her first cold, and who is outgrowing her newborn baby clothes and diapers every day.

A month has flown by...we are so excited for the months to come!

Happy 1 month Lucy!

Lucy 2 weeks

2 weeks of squeeks and grunts and sleepy yawns.

2 weeks of our first diaper blowouts, getting peed on, and thrown up on. 

2 weeks of zippered onesies and squirmy feet and middle of the night dancing/swinging/singing sessions.

2 weeks of angelic eyes staring up at mom and dad.

2 weeks of falling incredibly in love with this sweet little gift from God!

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not changelike shifting shadows. James 1:17

week one with Lucy

I prayed for this child, and the LORD has granted me what I asked of him. 1Samuel 1:27