please help your local food bank

This time of year is both a happy and sad time for us. I miss Kenzie more than words can express but really we have a lot to be thankful for. One of the things I am thankful for is food in our bellies, including on thanksgiving, but many families will be going without this year. The economy sucks and lines at the local food banks are longer than ever, one of the local food banks here has THOUSANDS of people hoping for and needing a free turkey and there just are not enough to go around. This year please consider buying a turkey to donate to a local food bank to help every family have a happy thanksgiving this year. Without peoples donations there will be families going without.

I don't really have much to say, or maybe I do

These days I feel like my mind is wandering a thousand miles a minute and I feel like I have sooooo many things to write/update about but when I sit down to actually do it I have nothing. Avery seems to be consuming life again, and Chloe is not into anything unless it is strictly on her terms. Both girls seem to be doing amazing, mischievous but amazing none the less.
  Avery, oh man I cannot believe that she is going on 13months already. She is a complete ham and total love. She is a hard core mama's girl and thinks that her world is ending if she isn't in my arms. She pulls herself to a stand and cruises all along the furniture and even lets go and stands independently. I thought for sure a couple of days ago she was going to take her first real step and she got very very close to it but fell. She is fast and if you turn around for a second she is into something. That girl is so nosey curious about EVERYTHING. Babbling is new in our world too, along with Mama and Dada constantly.
  Chloe, my little firecracker. So strong willed and hardheaded just like her mommy and daddy. Her Independence and hardheadedness make for some tough days sometimes. She no longer likes to take pictures (which is a lot of times why there are no new pics of her) and throws one hell of a tantrum. Smart beyond her years would be an understatement for this kid, she uses words in the correct context that are beyond her age. I honestly didn't realize that a 3.5 year old could be so sneaky, but damnit if Chloe isn't going to prove that to me. She cannot be left unsupervised in any room for more than maybe a minute, two minutes tops or she will sneak into things. I love her so much, and she is such a cuddle bug when she wants to be.
  As for me, I'm kind of just eh. This time of year always sucks for me. I kind of feel pulled in a million different directions. My emotions are all over the map, I am so sad that my holidays will never include all of my girls but at the same time I am so happy to have Avery and Chloe here with me. Then I start to feel guilty about being happy and I feel guilty for being sad, like no matter what I do I am being an unfair mom to someone. On top of the holidays and missing Kenzie all the damn "my first thanksgiving" and "my first Christmas" shit is out and it kind of stings a little lot. These are our first holidays with Avery home but because of stupid ass prematurity it isn't her first holidays, someone needs to make onesies that say "my first thanksgiving home from the NICU" and "my first Christmas home from the NICU". Did I mention I may still be having some bitter feelings about the whole preemie thing?! Phillip and I are doing pretty good, we really need to work on making time to spend together as a married couple not just as a family though. He is working in Stockton now, it is a longer drive (but not by much) but it is sooooo much better for our marriage that he works there. When he was working here in town he was so unhappy with the environment that he would come home grouchy and it would spill over into home life and was affecting our marriage pretty negatively. Now working in Stockton the shop is busy almost all the time and it is much faster paced and he is much happier. He comes home in a good mood, less irritable and just generally nicer. Plus it helps that he should be getting a raise too :).

prematurity awareness month

November is prematurity awareness month with the 17th being prematurity awareness day. On the 17th please wear a purple ribbon to show support and raise awareness in honor of Avery and all babies born early.

Happy 1st Birthday Avery June

Wow, 1 year already. I cannot believe that you are a year old already, you really are my little miracle.

to my dearest daughters

Dear Chloe,
My little fireball, you are the most strong willed and hard headed person I have ever met. You remind me so much of myself when I was little. I cannot believe that you are 3.5 years old already. You have grown up so much so fast and I love you so much. Our time together is more precious than diamonds and I love when we get to spend time just the two of us. Your imagination and creativity are so far beyond what I could have ever expected of you. You remind me so much of your papa, so smart that you are devious. The world is your playground and I am so glad that I get to watch you grow and explore and become a person that is kind, loving and unique. You changed my life, you made me a mommy and you have not stopped turning my world upside down every since. I can't imagine not having you in my life. Always remember baby, you are my girl, you are special and amazing and worth the entire world. I love you more and more everyday, to the moon and baby baby girl.

Love always,

Mommy

Dear McKenzie,

You are my angel. You are with me every moment of everyday. Every time your sisters wake up smiling I know its because of you. I know that they feel you with everything in them. You watch over us, all of us. You are the guardian angel to your sisters. I know that you protect them and keep them safe for me. I miss you with every second that passes and when I think about living the rest of my life without you it takes my breath away. I close my eyes and think about you and I see you in my dreams. When I take that extra time for and extra long blink its because I see you when I close my eyes and I don't want to open them. I just want to keep them closed and watch you forever. I remember every detail of you, and the way you felt so perfect in my arms. I love you my little angel, to the moon and back.

love always,

Mommy

Dear Avery,
My little bit. You came into our lives and completely changed our world. You were the smallest baby I had ever seen. I couldn't believe that the tiny little baby with a baseball sized head was mine. You have been a fighter since day one. You have proved to everyone that you my dear may have the Hunt last name but baby girl you are a Littlefield through and through. You have always done things in your own time and just when we want to throw our hands up you prove to us that patience is a virtue that maybe we need a little more of. You captured the hearts of your daddy and I. You turned your sister's world completely upside down and backwards and you do it with a smile. You are going to do amazing things someday baby. I love you to the moon and back.

Love always,

Mommy

To all 3 of my girls,
You have made me the proudest mommy in the whole world. When I think about how amazing and lucky I am I feel like my heart might burst from joy. My eyes fill with tears because I know just how much you have enriched my life. The world will be a better place having had you girls here. Thank you for making me a better person!

hard to believe

Hard to believe its this time

homemade macaroni and cheese

 This is the recipe I used, I got it from Crock Pot Girls

16 oz macaroni noodles, cooked al dente
2 eggs, beaten
12 oz evaporated milk
12 oz milk (skim, 2 %, or whole, your choice)
16 oz extra sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
8 oz mild cheddar cheese, shredded
Salt/pepper to taste

Cook noodles until they are still slightly firm.
Drain and put in Crock Pot.
Whisk eggs, and add to evaporated milk and milk.
Add salt and pepper to taste.

I didn't measure exact on the cheese since I didn't buy already shredded cheese but next time I will add more, and I think it would be really good if i added some chicken into it.
Pour over noodles and stir. Add cheeses, saving a little to sprinkle on top.
Cook on low 3-4 hours.

hawaiian meatballs

Tonight we made hawaiian meatballs in the crockpot. It is a recipe i got from crockpot girls and is supposed to be an appetizer. We made it a dinner by serving with rice and veggies (it would be really good with steamed broccoli but i don't like broccoli).

2 lb. bag frozen meatballs (or however much you want, we did less)
1 bottle BBQ sauce
1 jar pineapple preserves (we used apricot pineapple preserves and it was FANTASTIC)

Spray crock pot with non-stick spray.
Place meatballs in crock pot.
Mix together BBQ sauce and pineapple preserves, and pour over meatballs.
Stir gently to coat.

Cover and cook on LOW for 3 hours

Chloe and Jaylynn loved them (and so did Phillip and myself)

Day 7: Fruit

Day 7 of the 30 day photo challenge I posted about HERE is fruit.

In our house fruit is like candy and we go through it fast. So currently there really isn't any fruit in the house right now. When I started thinking about day 7 being fruit I was tempted to take a picture of fruit at a friends house until a light bulb in my head went off. We do have fruit in the house!

Ha! Avery's baby food. I take it out of the cardboard thing it comes in and use a permanent marker to write what it is when i stack it in the cabinets so that it is easier to tell when i go to get one.

Dear Phillip

Dear Phillip

Next month we will celebrate 4 years of wedded bliss. Wow 4 years, its seems like 40 or 50 ;). I love you more now than I did the day we got married. We have had good days and bad days and I wouldn't trade a single minute of that time. I am so proud and lucky to get to walk through this journey of life with you by my side. You truly are my soul mate, a one of a kind. You are most certainly the sane to my in. I am the luckiest person in the world to have you as my rock and our girls are sooooo blessed to have you as their daddy. I love you the mosterest babe and I am looking forward to getting old with you and spending our life together.

an 11 month old

Thats what Avery is! Holy shit that means in 1 month I will have a 1yr old. How the hell is it possible that its almost that time?

first crock pot meal

My sister just gave us a crock pot so I have been gathering some recipes to try. Tonight we made one for the first time. We made some salsa chicken and put it over white rice. It is a recipe that rotty gave me, although I don't think it is on her blog.

4 chicken breasts (we used thighs)
2 jars of salsa
shredded cheese

Put the chicken in the crockpot and pour the salsa over it
cook on low in the crock pot for 6hrs (we cooked for 7hrs)
Before you take it out add in the shredded cheese of your choice and stir until melted.
serve over brown rice (we did white rice)

This is definitely a recipe that we will make again!

day 6: from a low angle

 Day 6 of the 30 day photo challenge I posted about HERE is from a low angle.

Well being that we have been pretty much stuck at home since the girls have been sick this is as good as a low angle will get for now. Avery was sitting on me and showing that she is a Nikon girl (or at least that my lens cap tastes good)

day 5: from a high angle

Day 5 of the 30 day photo challenge I posted about HERE is from a high angle.

Avery was supposed to be laying down drinking her bottle that she made very clear she wanted, but as soon as I gave it to her she decided she no longer wanted it that she would rather watch her dad and sister play in the pool.

flashback

I was reading some of my past blogs and just poking around here since i really haven't in a long time and I randomly noticed that since I started my blog I have progressively written more blogs each year. Well this year I have only blogged 40something times so far, I am pretty sure I wont be writing more than last year (180 blogs) thanks to Avery's NICU stay. Anyway, as I was poking around I found the blog about Avery's homecoming so of course I had to read it. Reading it took me right back to that bliss that I was feeling, to that moment we got in the car and drove away from the hospital with tears streaming down my face. When Phillip asked me what was wrong I told him nothing, I was happy, it was the first time we had both Avery and Chloe in the car together. It was a moment of pure happiness. I remember getting home and letting Chloe hold Avery for the first time, she was so in love with her sister she just kept smiling. Its amazing how much has changed since then, but going back to that moment while reading her homecoming blog was exactly what i needed tonight.

Day 4: something green

Day 4 of the 30 day photo challenge I posted about HERE is "something green". I have very few green things around the house, as a matter of fact I think the only green things in the house belong to the girls with the exception of 2 green shirts that I own. It just so happens though that this morning when I got the girls dressed I dressed them both in green outfits. So here is my something(s) green....

day 3: clouds

Day 3 of the 30 day photo challenge I posted about HERE is clouds. This is a picture of the clouds I took standing outside of my apartment door (we are an upstairs apartment).

I should probably add that it is 96 degrees outside right now and those are the only clouds in sight.

Day 2: what I wore today

**NOTE: I took a couple of days break from this and blogging altogether for my grandpa's funeral**

Day 2 of the 30 day photo challenge i posted about  HERE is "what I wore today". I am going to do the what I wore today baby edition since i am all frumpy like in my house clothes. So, for today's blog it is a picture of Avery.

Today Avery wore her chick onesie that says "me and my peeps".