Creamy Mac n Cheese Casserole

Recipe Wednesday!!!

Creamy Mac n Cheese Casserole


Ingredients
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 tsp dry mustard
- 2 tbsp flour
- 1 cup milk
- 1 can cream of chicken soup
- 2 cups shredded cheese (I usually use sharp cheese)
- 1 box rotini pasta
- 1 bag broccoli florets
- 1 can potatoes, cut into bite sizes
- (optional- you can also put cubed chicken breasts in)

1. Preheat oven to 350

2. Bring pasta to a boil, add broccoli and potatoes. Keep boiling until all are cooked. Drain. Return to pan.

3. Melt butter. Add flour and dry mustard. Blend until a thick paste.

4. Add milk and mix. Add cream of chicken soup and stir until all is blended, and mixture is thick.

5. Add cheese. Stir until creamy.

6. Pour sauce mixture over pasta mixture and Stir until combined.

7. Pour into baking dish. Top with cheese.

8. Bake 20 minutes or until cheese is bubbly.

Enjoy!! 

This is a favorite in our house! The kids love it! The husband loves it! Win Win!!

5 Truths About Motherhood

`When I was growing up I always knew I wanted to be a stay at home mom. I would play with my baby dolls and imagine being the best mom ever.

And with my barbies...the mom barbie I played with, was the cool mom that all the kids liked. 

BUT...Let me tell you a few realities about motherhood that I have learned since I first became a mom.


1. Being a Mom is hard...

When you first get that positive pregnancy test all you can think about is how good it will be to be a mom and have a baby. 

How much fun you will have dressing your new baby, and the peaceful sleeping baby will get. And then when your baby gets a little older how feeding your toddler will be so much fun to see all the silly faces when she tries new foods.

What you don't think about is that you'll peed on when you change your newborns diaper. When you try to dress that cute little bundle in that little outfit your baby won't stop kicking his legs, or trying to roll over. It's an exercise just to get the little stinker dressed. Getting a baby dressed is hard...

The sleepless nights you now get because your baby wants a bottle every 5 minutes. Or teething that keeps baby awake. Getting baby to sleep good is hard...

Those cute silly faces your expecting to see when baby tries new foods. But, you also get those new foods on the wall, the floor, all over babies face, and all over you. Feeding a baby is hard...

Parenting is also hard because when toddlers get older they start talking. Then you start hearing the word 'no' coming from them a lot. They start back-talking and trying to get their own way. Oh and the fighting and attitudes, don't even get me started on that. 

2. Being a Wife is hard...

You have so many dreams of being the perfect mom when you become one, that sometimes you forget that your still a wife. I'm including this because to be a good mom, I need to also be a good wife. I have three girls, their watching and learning from me how to be a wife and mom. 

Sometimes at the end of the day you just want to go to bed and relax. Maybe watch tv or read a book to unwind. You really just want to be left alone. No more people to pull on your shirt and ask for a snack or hang on your legs or ask for another drink or ask for another story... or, the list goes on. 

So at the end of the day, if your like me, you just want to be left alone. No more questions, no more hanging off me, no more (insert your answer here). 

But that's not always the reality. You still have a husband that needs your attention too. And as much as you just want to hibernate for the rest of the night until the kids get up in the morning...you can't. 

It's hard to be a wife at the end of a long day of being a mom.


3. Being a Friend is hard...

Sometimes you make plans with a friend to go out without kids... But then you have to cancel last minute because a kid gets sick.

You feel like the worst friend ever... because it seems like this happens every time you go out.

Or on the rare chance that you still have a friend without kids... you only talk about your kids because they are your job. Your with them all day everyday. You never ever get a break from them. And your friend is probably sick and tired of hearing about all your kid stories. 

Then there's the fact that your always busy. Your kids have things going on, so trying to schedule a night out is close to impossible.


4. Being a Person is hard...

Your now socially awkward because you're around your kids all the time. 

You say things like "I'll be right back, I gotta go potty" and other things like that.

If your a stay at home mom like I am you may be a lonely mom too. Being a stay at home mom you don't get much adult interaction, which is also why your socially awkward too. 

My kids are my job. I also home-school my 2 oldest. Which means I'm at home a lot. That also means I don't get out much...See where I'm going with this? ...It's lonely. 

You can also lose your identity. Your life revolves around your kids and everything they do and what their involved in. You lose time to do things that you enjoy, just for fun. 

"Who are you?" ... "I'm so and so's mom"

You can forget who you are, and who you were before you had kids. 


5. Not wanting to change a thing is hard...

Yes...I know this sounds crazy. But have you ever thought your life would be so much easier if things were different? If you were someone else? If you didn't have kids?

But the fact is, I don't want my life to be different. I don't want to be someone else. I don't want to not have my kids. I love my life... because it's mine. My ups and downs...are MY ups and downs.

The fact is...even though these little people have taken over my life...I wouldn't have it any other way. I love them more than anything.

The Story of Ava

Since I did a post on the Story of Emma, I'll do one on Ava now. Leah will be the next one.

I'll start where I left off from Emma's story...

My husband found a job! ...but... it was 5-6 hours away. We were living with my parents at the time. I'm very close with my family, so this was very hard for me to comprehend doing...Leaving my family.

He of course took the job. It was the perfect job for him. It's where he wanted to be, and with a great Christian company. He started the beginning of March 2010.

Emma was 3 1/2 months old now. Jon went ahead and moved to the new city, to start his new job. I stayed behind for Emma's 4 month well check appointment. 

Jon came back for 3 weekends in a row to visit Emma and me... The third weekend he came back for a visit, we moved with him. 

The next weekend after we moved... I honestly don't even remember why anymore, I must not have felt very well, so I took a pregnancy test...It was positive. 

On April 1st...of course. Neither Jon, nor my family believed me...I hardly believed it myself... I was pregnant.

I feel like a lot of this was a blur. I don't remember a whole lot... Other than we just had Emma, we just moved to a new City, I didn't know anyone, and I just found out that I'm gonna have another baby. BUT... that's a whole different post click here to read.

I had to wait a whole month before I could go to a doctor, or even make an appointment somewhere. Until our new insurance came into affect. 

I didn't start getting sick until about 12 weeks. It was rough...having an infant and being pregnant at the same time. Of course, every time I left the room for my "morning sickness" Emma cried because I left her. It wouldn't have been so hard if we were still around family. 

Anyway... When it finally came time for the ultrasound, we found out we were having another girl! 

We also found out that my placenta was lying low, but that it should fix itself as i grow. I got another ultrasound around 30 weeks I think...and everything was normal! 

^This is Emma At 11 months old and me 37 weeks along with Ava. 

I started having contractions early morning on Nov. 18th. I went to the hospital to get checked. I went from 3 centimeters to 4 centimeters in about 1 hour. So they decided to keep me. 

I knew that I was under a lot of stress during this pregnancy...but I was about to find out how much it really affected me.

I was due Dec. 6, 2010...the day before Emma's first birthday. She came 2 1/2 weeks early, on Nov. 18th. We named her Ava!

The labor and delivery itself was actually pretty similar to when I had Emma. Finally, the moment came for that final push and when she came out ... there was no cry. I felt like everything around me was coming to a stop. I remember looking at Jon and saying "she's not crying, why isn't she crying? babies cry when their born"

Jon and I just looked at each other and were trying to see what was going on. Why didn't she cry? What was going on? 

A nurse finally came over and told us that since she was so early, technically preterm, she was having some trouble breathing. Every new parents worst fear.

This is the first picture we got of her...

Stress can cause preterm birth. So that's why Ava came early. Preterm is 37- 38 weeks...I did not know this, but if an expectant mother is under stress it can slow down certain organs form developing as they should. So that's why she was having trouble breathing.

They had her under something called 'the hood'.

The hood wasn't helping so they had me kangaroo with her to see if that would help regulate her breathing. That was the first time I got to hold her. They let me hold her for about 10 minutes before they decided to take her to the NICU.

And then they whisked her away.

This is what she looked like for about the first week or so. They hooked her up to a cpap to help her breathe.

When she started breathing better on her own, she just had to learn how to eat good on her own...Without a feeding tube.

She came home Dec.1st! And she finally got to meet her big sister, who was 11 1/2 months old.

 Now she is a healthy 4 year old!!

 This was a rough time, but I know that we went through this for a reason. 

The Story of Emma

Since Emma's 5th birthday is today I thought I'd write the story of her.

It all started... 

On Jon and I's first wedding anniversary we decided to start trying to get pregnant with our first baby! I remember being so excited to finally start the next chapter in our lives and start a family! 

The first month and nothing. 

Month two...still nothing.

Now, I knew it would be too good to be true to get pregnant the first month of trying... But then month three, four, and five went by. I was frustrated. 

And then it happened! It took eight months, but I was finally expecting! Our first baby! 

We were so excited! 

I was already getting cravings and noticing little changes.

I was about 6 or 7 weeks along... It took almost a week for the doctor to confirm that we lost the baby. 

We were devastated. 

I...was devastated. 

Nothing could have prepared me mentally and physically for what I was going through and what I was about to go through because of this.

I was a mess. I went through a lowest low in my life. A depression that I didn't know how I was going to get out of. 

After about three months- the recommended time to wait- we started trying again. I felt good about trying again, but I wasn't exactly emotionally over my miscarriage yet. 

Over a year later and we were still trying...no baby.

I saw a specialist to hopefully get some answers. At one point I was diagnosed with a case of PCOS. But they said I should still be able to get pregnant.

I even had the specialist say that I'll never get pregnant... I believe the word he used was that I was "infertile". 

But no one could give me a real answer as to why I wasn't getting pregnant.

After a couple more months of nothing...I went back to my regular obgyn and asked if there was anything else I could try before giving up. She recommended Clomid... I was on my second month of taking it and BAM, I got a positive pregnancy test!

I was in disbelief...I mean, I was just told a couple months before that I may never get pregnant. 

I remember so vividly what happened when I got that positive... Just to be sure I took a second test. Another positive. Jon was working late that day. So, What else do you do? Call your best friend! So, I called my friend Ang. She wasn't busy so I ended up going over to hang out. This might be gross, but I took my tests and showed her. I asked her if I was reading them right lol! (She already had 2 or 3 kids at the time) She confirmed that I was in fact reading them correctly! 

So when it came time to tell Jon...I was actually a little nervous. What if I lost this one too? I didn't want to raise his hopes only for them to be dropped again.

We were sitting on the couch watching tv... Now if you know Jon, you know that he is a very technical person. He's very into computers and phones and all things techie...So how else is the perfect way to tell him? Through technology! ...and you may not agree with this way of me telling him, but it was perfect for us...I sent him a text! A simple one that said "your gonna be a daddy!"

When he got this text...I will never forget his reaction. He looked at me with a huge smile and said "Are you serious?" I smiled and shook my head yes, and then of course we hugged and I may have cried a little.

This time we waited the recommended 12 weeks to announce it. 

The pregnancy was fairly by the book...I had morning sickness, in the morning, for only the first 12 weeks. I craved steak and that actually helped with the morning sickness. I also craved pink lemonade. It felt like it took forever for me to start showing. I felt like I waited so long for this that I just wanted to show so i could see that our baby was still growing.

At the 18 week ultrasound we found out we were having a girl! 

We also found out that she had a 2 vessel cord. We didn't really know what all this meant at the time... Most babies have a 3 vessel umbilical cord, but our baby only had 2 vessels in her umbilical cord. We found out that meant that she wasn't going to get as much food and nutrients as a baby with a 3 vessel cord. So she would be on the small side. 

I got more ultrasounds than normal to make sure she was getting enough food and nutrients and growing ok.  

About 20 weeks pregnant my husband lost his job. We were scared and unsure what was going to happen. Since we lost our insurance, I had to find a different doctor. Fortunately, we were able to get medicaid. I ended up getting an awesome doctor. Who I actually liked better! We also moved in with my parents.

My due date was November 27, 2009... She was induced 10 days overdue. She was born Dec. 7, 2009! Healthy!

(We first started trying to get pregnant Sept. of 2006. It took more then 2 1/2 years for us to have our first baby)

She weighed in at 6 pounds 1 ounce. 19 inches long. We named her Emma. 

Now Emma is a happy, healthy 5 year old!

And I wouldn't trade our experience for anything. God knew what he was doing the whole time. Emma is an awesome big sister! 

You know you're a SAHM if...

I read a list of 25 reasons you know your a SAHM. I decided to make my own list. I may copy a few,  but these will all be what applies to me.  Here it goes...

You know your a stay at home mom if...

1. You wear yoga pants...but don't do yoga

2. Your socially awkward because you only talk to kids all day.

3. You eat chocolate in secret so the kids don't see.

4. Your TV is on all day but you don't actually watch it much.

5. The best part of your day is when all the kids are napping.

6. Nap time is never long enough.

7. Showers are a luxery...and a rarity. 

8. You go to put shoes on after several days of not wearing them and you find toys in them

9. You spend nap time either cleaning or relaxing

10. When you put jeans on your kids ask where your going.

11. When you go on a date you have nothing to talk about except the kids.

12. Unless its a normal laundry day and you have a load to do, you usually forget about it.

13. Baby wipes are really the only cleaning tool you need.

14. You know what restaurants nearby have play places.

15. It's only 9am and your ready for bed.

16. Going to the bathroom involves an audience.

17. You don't remember when the last time was that you slept all night.

18. Your mini-van is so messy your embarrassed for others to see it.

19. Your able to identify who's coming down the stairs based on the thudding of their feet above you.

20. Sneezing is more about squeezing your legs than the sneeze itself.

21. You randomly find odd things in the freezer or fridge...example: crayons.

22. You know the theme songs to Disney Junior songs by heart.

23. You say something and realize your becoming your mom.

24. Your busy all day and you have nothing to show for it.

25. Your dream car is now a certain mini van and no longer a car.

26. Wiping a toddlers nose is more of an excersise than anything else.

27. You wouldn't change any of it for the world.

Meat N Cheese Roll Ups

Meat n Cheese Roll Ups...

Ingredients:
- Crescant Rolls
- Cheese Slices
- Sliced Lunchmeat


Directions:

- Preheat oven to 350

- Unroll the crescent rolls. I usually use 3 packages of crescent rolls. (Makes 24 rolls)

- Lay a slice of lunch meat on it. (I used turkey this time)

- Put some cheese on the meat. (I used american, but you can use any kind) I only put 2 little slices on it so the cheese doesn't all melt out the sides.

- Roll it up. 

- Cook for about 10 minutes. Check it. It will probly not be done yet. I usually rotate the pan its on so all sides cook evenly. Maybe 5 more minutes. Or until crescent roll is done.

These are a big hit in our house! 

Enjoy!!

Homemade Mac n Cheese

This is one of my favorite meals to make because it's so easy...and it's a big hit with the kids!

Homemade Mac n Cheese...

Ingredients

-2 cups elbow macaroni

-2 Tbsp margarine

-2 Tbsp flour

-1 tsp dry mustard

-1 tsp salt (optional)

-2 cups milk

-2 cups shredded cheese (any kind or mixed...i mix different cheeses, I'll explain later)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cook macaroni and drain. 

While the macaroni is cooking...in another pan melt butter. When completely melted...add flour, salt, and dry mustard. Mix together until it's a paste.

Add milk. If you want it more cheesy just add 1 1/2 cups milk. If you want it more creamy add 2 cups milk... When the paste is all dissolved (I use a whisk to break it up), add the shredded cheese. The directions only call for cheddar cheese, but I mix different kinds of cheeses, I think it gives it a little more flavor. I usually do a combination of cheddar, mozzarella, and taco cheeses (I have used sharp in the combination too before). For me, it's just whatever I have in the fridge. All the cheeses combined should still add to 2 cups. 

Stir in the cheese until it's all melted. Stirring consistently so the cheese doesn't burn.

Mix in the macaroni.

Pour in a 2-qt casserole dish. Top with cheese (for this I usually just use the cheddar, but any kind is fine) You can also top with bread crumbs and sprinkle paprika. Both ways are good. (I usually just sprinkle cheese on top because it's easier.)

Bake at 375 degrees for 15-20, or when cheese is melted and bubbly around the edges.

Enjoy!! This is a big hit in our house. It's my go to recipe since it's so good and easy!

Image

So the other day I had all 3 girls with me at Once Upon A Child (I know, crazy, right). You know...just walking down an isle trying to find a size for one of the girls. And all the sudden, while walking past a lady looking at a different size, she sees me with all the girls and says "another girl?" I say the first thing that comes to mind..."no" And I keep walking.

Now this was a little surprising to me as I didn't think I was THAT fat...But then again, I HAVE had 3 kids, so I'm bound to have some extra "baggage" (aka flub). And...I know there's some pounds that need to be lost.

There are so many ways to look at this...

Should I be ok with it? This is how I look after having 3 kids, it's not that bad (right?) ...Should I be offended ...either for her thinking I was pregnant when I am NOT, or her thinking I was big enough to be half way and know the sex already. I have had 3 kids and if I was far enough along to know the sex of the baby I would be a lot bigger. 

Yes I would LOVE to loose weight! And this makes me even more motivated to do so. But, it's not as easy as it used to. I used to have REALLY high metabolism. It was great! When Jon and I got married, at 20 years old I was 96 lbs. That's quite different now. 

After I told my mom this, she said "well, your not a teenager anymore, so you don't have a teenagers body." So true. I have the body of a mom. I have the body of someone who has given birth to 3 kids.

I mean...just think about that for a minute. I've had (of course at different times) 3 people growing inside me. I should not be expected to have a perfect body, or a flat tummy. No one that has given birth should be expected to show no signs of it.

Basically...if you've had a baby I expect you to have some flub. The more babies you've had, the more flub I expect you to have. If you have no flub, my first reaction would probly be, no kids. (No offense to you skinny moms)

I hope I don't step on any toes...I understand wanting to be fit. If you work out and work hard to get rid of that flub... more power to you. But not everyone can loose the flub that easily. And not everyone has energy to workout on top of all the other mommy things to do...just saying.

But I could go even further than just the tummy flub...What about all the other stuff that goes along with our new mom bodies?...

Sticking with the same area...stretch marks. Can I get an Amen? Honestly, I hate my stretch marks. And I know I can't be the only one that hates them. But it's proof that I'm a mom. Blah Blah Blah...Seriously, that's just something we tell ourselves to make us feel better. And does it help? Maybe a little.

Stretch marks and belly flub have made me so self conscience of myself. I know I'm a mom and these things shouldn't bother me like this anymore. Plus I don't want to teach my girls that its ok to have a bad image of yourself. 

But that's not always reality. We want to look at ourselves in the mirror and think 'wow, what a hott mama'. But honestly, who does that? Not me. When I look in the mirror I think 'wow, I'm so fat', or 'it really does look like I could be pregnant' (again, I am not). We always have negative thoughts about ourselves. At least I do. 

The right way to think is 'God chose me to be a mom, He knew I could handle this body'. I want my girls to learn how to love themselves, for who they are, so I need to do the same, I can't expect them to love themselves if I don't show them how. 

The biggest role model

I am my kids' biggest role model.

Whether I like it or not I am the biggest example in my kids' life. Especially being a stay at home mom...I am with them all the time. What I do...they will see, whether I know it or not.

Being an example and role model is a silent job...it's un-seen. They see the things you do and how you act even if you don't know their watching...So what I do is something I have to be ok with my girls doing. The way I react to something...is that the way I want them to react too?

I have pierced ears...and I'm ok with my girls getting pierced ears. Even though they haven't yet. They do need to be responsible enough to not mess with them and help take care of them.

I have dyed my hair red before...there are pictures. Am I ok with my girls dyeing their hair a surprising or strange color? 

I don't have any tattoos...do I want my girls following in my example and not getting a tattoo? If I had one...I would have to be ok with my kids getting one too.  

Do I want my girls to talk clean? Yes...so that's how I talk. Have good manners?...say please and thank you? Yes! That's why I even say please and thank you to my girls. If I expect them to have good manners toward others...it only makes sense to have good manners to them too. 

I need to dress the way I want my girls to dress. As a mom of girls I need to teach them to dress modestly...even at a young age. The way I dress is a good influence on them and how they should dress. Even though they may be too young right now to understand, I can still lead by example and use this as a tool for later when they will understand.

Even just the little things I do...like how I react when I get mad. Or how I handle punishing them. It's all things that their little minds are taking in. I want their minds to absorb the right things. Am I doing the right things? Am I being the right kind of influence on them? 

This is not something that I think about as much as I should. In the midst of being mad I usually don't stop and think "what kind of example am I being right now". Am I leading them in the right direction? In the way they should go?

The Favorite...?

So you know the saying that your not supposed to have a favorite kid? Seriously, how could you even decide? But...is there a difference between a favorite kid and different bonds with them? Yes...I think so.

I love all my girls the same...but in different ways. They have different personalities. So we have different bonds...we get along in different ways...But I don't think that's the same as having a favorite.

Emma is my oldest. She just turned 4 last month (in December). We are so much alike...she is literally my mini-me...just like me. Our personalities are very similar. Even down to the little things like we don't like trying new foods. Or we would much rather wear yogo pants or "soft pants" as Emma calls them, than blue jeans. She is even more outgoing like me. And don't even get me started on her sweet-tooth she gets from me.

Ava is my middle girl. She turned 3 in November. We are less alike...she is much more like Jon. She has such a silly personality. Although she does have my sweet tooth. She is also very sneaky, and I think she gets that from me too. She once licked frosting off about 8 cupcakes without me knowing. She is very stubborn and Jon says she gets that from me. 

Leah is my youngest...the baby of the family. We will be celebrating her 1st birthday at the end of January! She is my happy baby. Sweet baby. Silly. She is still too young to know who she will be more like I think. I also feel a bond with Leah because she very well could be our last baby. Unless God blesses us with a surprise.

So...no favorites...just different bonds with different kids. Each kid has their own personality so you get along with them differently. So maybe...all my girls are my favorites :) 

Whirlwind

So you might be wondering where I've been...It's been a whirlwind the past couple weeks.

Christmas Eve we traveled to Elkhart, where my family lives. So most of the day we were traveling. It's a 5-6 hour trip... and of course we stopped at Lee's famous recipe chicken!

Christmas day, of course, was quite busy. We usually have a Christmas at my parents house and then a separate Christmas at my Grandma's house. But this year it was combined at my parents house. Double the presents. Double the chaos. But we had fun.

  

Thursday...the day after Christmas...Jon and I went on a date for lunch before he left to go home. The girls and I stayed with my parents for a longer visit. 

Saturday...my brother and his family came over to my parents house and we took the kids sledding! (my parents house sits on a hill, so we have grown up going sledding right outside our door!) 

This was the first time I was able to take my just turned 3 year old sledding!

The kids really enjoyed it :) 

My youngest watched from inside. 

Tuesday morning we went to my grandparents house to visit with them. I praise the Lord I was able to go and take my girls for this visit. 

We didn't do anything for New Year's Eve...I value my sleep too much...New Year's day it was just a lazy day with the whole family. 

The girls and I were supposed to go home on Saturday, Jan 4th, but decided to stay...I'm very glad we did.

Sunday evening into Monday Elkhart got quite a bit of snow. Monday and Tuesday were the really really cold days. In the negatives. The real feel for Monday was -45. So of course we stayed home...especially since there was a ban on driving. 

The driving ban was lifted just in time for me to have to take Emma to an urgent care for an ear infection on Wednesday...and of course that evening she started looking like she might have pink eye. 2 days later of waiting it out I decided it was just a cold in her eye. It seems to be better now. 

Saturday evening...Jan 4th...my Opa (Grandpa) went home to be with the Lord. He fought cancer for over a year...and now he is walking the streets of gold!

The funeral was on Friday...it was beautiful, he would have liked it. He was 90 years old. An amazing example and role model for everyone who knew him. My grandparents had been married for 63 years! What an amazing example of a God-centered marriage! 

Such a bittersweet time...Life is so precious. Cherish every minute you have with your loved ones. I am so blessed that I was able to see him one last time...and take my girls to see him too. We will miss Opa always, but heaven has gained a true warrior for Christ. We have comfort and peace knowing he's with Jesus.