Cheese Please!

 I love cheese.  Cheddar, swiss, muenster, american, goat, feta, blue, brie, mozzarella, ricotta, (to name a few) any kind I just love it all.  I love to make cheesey things.  Macaroni and cheese, fettucine alfredo, quesadillas, lasagna, mmm I'm getting hungry...  And wouldn't it just so happen that the man I marry is lactose intolerant!  That's right, sometimes the food I make literally makes Bobby sick.  But I still make them, I'm such a bad wife...

So I was craving some homeade baked macaroni and cheese.  The kind I make is my mom's recipe.  It calls for 3 different kinds of cheese: cheddar, swiss, and fontina.  But you know, not too much only like 2 pounds or so.  Bobby gets sick just thinking about it.  Now don't get me wrong, he loooves to eat it, but hates how it rocks his stomach.  Even when he takes triple the dose of his lactaid it doesn't help.  Poor guy.  But back to my craving, I couldn't just ignore it.  I was dreaming of the ooey gooey cheesey noodles.  I needed some baked macaroni and cheese.  My favorite part is the edge where it gets a little crunchy!  So off I ventured to the internet.  There had to be a less-cheesey-but-just-as-good version out there somewhere.  And you know who came to my and Bobby's stomach's rescue?  Why Martha Stewart of course!

She has the answer to pretty much everything!

I found her recipe for Healthy Macaroni and Cheese.  With only 4 oz. of cheddar cheese, 1/2 c. ricotta cheese and 1 1/2 c. milk, this recipe sounded like a much better alternative to my version.  It also has butternut squash in it!  Love ways to sneak in veggies, even though we love eating them on their own...  But with this added little bonus, I didn't feel too bad about letting Jack in on the macaroni fun!  And to make it even healthier, I used the Barilla Plus elbows! 

We love this line...

And the verdict?  Pretty darn good!  You really couldn't tell that the squash was even in the dish!  So it would be great for picky kids!  Jack loved it and ate two servings.  I'm not too sure what his serving size is, but he ate a ton!  I will definitely make this again.  It didn't upset Bobby's stomach, so this might be our new go-to macaroni and cheese recipe.

I've got to get back into my at least one new recipe a week routine.  I'm not sure when it disappeared, but I miss it.  I think now that Jack is extremely mobile, searching for a new yummy recipe has been sent to the back burner.  But I will get back to it.  And I'll let you know what that new and exciting recipe is, maybe that will keep me on track!  Man, all this talk about food leaves me hungry...

Is It Fall Yet?

 I love to decorate for fall.  I love fall colors.  I love changing leaves.  I love crisp cool nights.  I love pumpkin scented candles.  And really anything pumpkin flavored.  I probably make the best pumpkin cheesecake out there.  Just go with it...  Too bad I live in the south and it's still in the 90s.  How are ya ever supposed to get excited for fall when I still sweat walking to my mailbox at 3pm? 

This will (probably) be the last fall I decorate our house.  The last time I break out my fall decoration box to do up the mantle.  The last time I get to make a Thanksgiving dinner where I try to rival Martha Stewart.  I'm close you know, if she didn't do the whole dinner in her horse barn thing, I might have beat her out...  I didn't get to make Thanksgiving last year since Jack was due to arrive around then.  I was quite mad about that too.  Thanksgiving is my FAV meal.  I begged Bobby to let me make it, but he was so sure I would be in the middle of cooking and Jack would knock on the door ready to make his entrance.  Oh well, I've made sure he knows I WILL be cooking this year.  And even if it's just us, I won't be down sizing the menu.  Hope you're hungry hunny!

I'm very excited to take Jack to pick out pumpkins too!  Last year we went on a hayride to get ours.  We were the only adults without kids, well outside kids, but we had a blast anyway.  The farm also has a petting zoo, Jack loves his animals!  I'm not sure what Jack will be for Halloween.  A lot of baby costumes are quite warm and considering the weather might still be a tad on the warm hot side, I don't know what to do!  And it's not really like he'll be out trick or treating for more than say two houses.  It's gonna be more about the pictures.  Which I'm sure he'll just love...

And you know what happens after fall?  December! And that's when my little baby boy will be ONE!  How in the world has this happened already?  I am so not ready for this...

Nook-a-holic

 I have a new obsession.  The Nook.

I love this thing ♥

We got it a few weeks ago and I have barely put it down.  I love to read and love having any book I want at my fingertips.  Although having my credit card linked to this thing might not be so great for my bank account.  Especially since I have been engrossed in the Pretty Little Liars series.  I recently finished book 6 of 8.  They are very addicting!  I need to know what happens!  I just found out there is a tv series bases on the book too, but I can't find them online anywhere.  I'm trying to take a break right now and pay some attention to my family.  Sorry boys...

We had a great trip up to Atlanta.  Jack is such a good traveler.  He loved the aquarium! 

Can you believe how big this fish is??

It was harder for him to see the animals at the zoo, but he did notice the orangutans and laughed at them! Who can resist laughing at those silly guys???  Our hotel was so nice!  I would still be asleep in that bed if I could!  Very comfy!  It was so great to be on our own schedule and just go when we wanted.  Bobby and Jack even got to watch some Saturday morning cartoons together.

Although I love escaping on little getaways, I hate catching back up at home.  There is a never ending pile of laundry and two suitcases that still need to be unpacked.  Yes, my suitcase from NY is not unpacked yet, don't judge... 

Look Out ATL!

 Here we come!  Since I found a really good deal on a 4 star hotel in Buckhead, I was able to convince Bobby that we should jet up to Atlanta this weekend.  I've always wanted to use Hotwire, this seemed like the perfect time!  We didn't need to stay at a specific hotel, just wanted to stay in Buckhead.  And the hotel we ended up getting.....  drumroll please....

The InterContinental Buckhead!!

The Desperate Housewives of Atlanta have stayed here.  I'll probably be breaking out the biggest pair of celebrity sunglasses I can find for my entrance to the hotel. 

Our plans are to head to the aquarium and the zoo and find a few good places to eat.  With Jack running the show these days, we won't be able to eat at the fancy places we've been longing to eat at, like any of these, but we are excited to try Big Chow Grill.  Any restaurant where I can hand pick the ingredients then get something totally different if I don't like it is perfect in my book and unlimited stir fry is always a plus! 

I got a couple suggestions on some Thai restaurants around the aquarium and zoo.  Not sure where we will go yet, but more suggestions are always helpful!

The weather while we are up in ATL is supposed to be just perfect.  Not too hot, in the low to mid 80s and partly sunny to sunny.  Couldn't ask for much better!  So let's just hope for our little monster to behave and we should have a great little getaway!

Where'd Ya Go??

 Anyone asking themselves this question??  Sorry I guess I forgot to mention I was taking off for two weeks to vacay in NY.  Jack wanted to spend sometime with his grandparents!  But I'm back!  You can stop worrying now...

Jack and I had a ton of fun on our trip.  He was really great on the airplane.  I was so nervous.  He cried a little bit on the way up, mostly since it was naptime and he isn't used to falling asleep in my arms with like 75 people in the room.  But he charmed his way into the other passengers hearts with his big Jack smile and bright blue eyes, so they weren't upset by his little outburst.  Since pictures are much more fun, here is our trip photostyle.  Well you know Jack on our trip...

Eating his first piece of NY corn on the cob, so yummy!

Sharing my puffs with my great-great uncle jack!

Loving on my grandpa

Swinging with gramma

Laughing with grampa bb

In front of grampa bb's '67 camaro at Jack's first car show!

Driving the camaro!

Trying to be cute so Mommy will get him an ice cream at Papa Jack's Ice Cream Shop

Blueberry pancakes at the Country Club

Waiting for the T in Boston!

First time on the T!

Aunt Abbe loving Jack up

Passed out on the way home from Boston

Playing on the train table in Imagaine That!

My mom's friend Ginny owns Imagine That! and is just a big kid!

Jack meeting his future wife Miss Millie Louise

First time having Grandpa's lasagna!  Yummm!

Driving with the windows down does funny things to your hair!

Just went swimming at the cabin!

Waiting to get off the plane to see Daddy!

We had a great trip home.  I got to stroll around my favorite place on earth Wegman's.  We visited the Ithaca Farmers Market, one of my favorite outdoor markets.  I ate a lobster in Boston at Legal Seafood.  We saw all the family on both sides.  Went shopping at the Waterloo outlets, Jack of course made out like a bandit!  But it was so nice to sleep in my own bed last night.  Traveling takes so much out of you I could probably still be sleeping! 

We are gonna try to take a mini family vacay up to Atlanta this weekend since it will pretty much be Bobby's last weekend to do anything with us.  The deployment will be coming to an end in the next few months which means he will be super busy!  We really need to get going on my bucket list, so this little trip might help!

Ready, Set, Go.

 Waaaay back in February, I was invited to attend a luncheon for military spouses at a beautiful gated community in our town called The Ford Plantation.  This plantation was originally owned by Henry Ford and the homes are breathtaking!  We enjoyed a sangria cocktail hour and mingled with the plantation residents before watching a cooking demonstration.  The executive chef showed us how to make a delicious salad with grilled chicken and strawberries and a strawberry vinaigrette.  All during the mingling and cooking class, I noticed a woman taking photos of us.  Since I brought Jack along, she snapped a few of his adorable face.  No one can resist his cuteness.  I figured she worked for either the plantation or a newspaper and didn't really think about it too much.

A couple weeks later, I sat in on a VTC (video teleconference) with Bobby, the FRG (family readiness group) leaders and the guys in Iraq.  I noticed the woman from the luncheon who was taking pictures was there.  I asked Bobby who she was and he kinda shrugged his shoulders but said she was documenting the deployment.  She took a bunch of pictures during the VTC and got some great shots of Jack.  He was getting fussy, so I was playing airplane with him which always makes him smile.  Perfect photo-ops!

Later that night, Bobby came home from work and told me more about this woman.  Her name is Susan Weiss.  She and Bobby hit it off right away.  She is a retired investment banker who loves to road bike, take pictures, and travel the world doing both!  She has a special place in her heart for the military family which is how we have gotten to know her so well.  Since the beginning, she has been photographing our brigade's families during the deployment.  She attends every event like FRG meetings, our Walk to Iraq, tree dedication ceremonies, volunteer recognition ceremonies, R&R homecomings and even the birth of a few babies!  There is even talk of her getting to go to Iraq to meet the men and women of our brigade.  Her project called Ready, Set, Go. is being featured on military.com.  Susan would love for you to take a look and pass this along.  And if you go check it out, you might even see a familiar baby...

Princess Alexis (and Bobby)

Wahoo!!  We are all registered for this...

yes, Bobby will be a princess too.  I really wanted to run my first half with him.

So, next February we get to go to Disney again!  I just love Disney.  We love to eat there!  Our favorite place to eat is Jiko in Animal Kingdom, we had an awesome meal there!  Can't wait to go back!

Training has been going along, slow but steady.  It's still so daunting to think that I will be running for like 3 hours.  Getting out to run here is pretty tricky.  It's super hot.  Like we have had multiple heat advisories.  Since I run with Jack, I won't take him out if it's that hot.  And since Bobby doesn't get home till after dark most nights, my running gets thrown aside.  But going to NY for 2 weeks will be great cause I will be able to run every day!  And my mom is a huge runner, so I can get out with her.

Part of the registration process involves picking your favorite princess.  Easy for me, I love Sleeping Beauty, but when I asked Bobby who he wanted to be, he said "I don't want to be a princess."  Well tough cookies, cause it makes me choose one.  So who did I choose for Bobby?  Snow White.  Bobby has all these soldiers that follow him around and check in with him, so I thought that was like Snow White and her dwarfs.

One of the best parts about this race is that my two best friends from high school (and their husbands) are going to race it with us!  I see one of them a ton cause she only lives about two hours away from me, but the other lives in Maine and we always miss each other when visiting our hometown.  It will be so great to have a weekend (and in Disney) together.  I can't wait!  Also, I will get to meet a bunch of other military wives who will be racing! 

Oh and along the running topic, Savannah just got the approval for a Rock and Roll Marathon!  It will be November 5-6 2011.  Too bad we probably won't be here anymore.  Maybe that will be a little vacay back...

So wish me luck on my training!  I'll keep you updated!  And of course any and all running advice/tips is/are greatly appreciated.