sideways...

Hi All,

I hope you had a great weekend.

Here's the first of many videos that I'm sure to share...

Hopefully my video taking skills improve!

xo
Ralonda

one week...

A lot can happen in one week...


You can bring a new baby home...

who, by the way, hates the flash on your camera.

You can worry yourself silly about his jaundice,
constantly hanging out by the windows and doors
trying to see if he's still yellow or not.

You can fall so deeply, madly in love with this tiny human
that all you want to do is hold him, stare at him
and smell him... forgetting about your own
appearance or even to brush your teeth.

If you do happen to put the baby down for a moment,
or let his daddy hold him, stare at him or even smell him for a second
you might find that your camera or video recorder takes his place... and if
daddy refuses to hand him back over you might have a moment to
play around with Photoshop... or brush your teeth!

Daddy could even play a few songs for him.



If you can somehow put the new baby down while he's sleeping
you might be able to cook your hubby's favorite (ribs) for his birthday.

And have cake too!


Your new one could even pee all over daddy's belly
right after this photo... must have been the flash!

And after you help get daddy and baby cleaned up,

you might have a little time to edit some of your photos

for birth announcements.

And at the end of the first week with your newborn

you might find yourself tearing up with amazement

that he's already turning his head to the sound of your voice

and trying with all his little might to hold his head up.

Oh, they grow up so fast!

xo

Ralonda

someone new to love...

Introducing...

Jude William Frank Bryant

November 25th, 2008

8 lbs. 11 oz.

21 inches

All went well with bringing him into the world.

We're home now and doing great... just trying to savor every moment.

xo

Ralonda

gettin' ready...

A few weeks ago I was waking up during the night panicking about socks...


I didn't think we had enough socks for our lil' bundle of joy

due to arrive in eleven days or sooner.

So, I went shopping...

And now I have twenty-plus pairs of socks just waiting to keep his lil' piggies nice and toasty.

After the socks, the obsessive, cleaning, craziness set in...

I love our pets, but their hairs are driving me nutty.

We also had our baby shower.

A huge THANK YOU-YOU'RE AMAZING
to my best friend, Amy
and mother-in-law, Ma B
for throwing JB and I a fun filled, gift laden couples shower!


The petit four's were absolutely delightful.


This is where I got stuck...
I had every intention of taking a lot more pictures of our shower,
but after I ate one of these little scrumptious darlings,
I set my camera down to greet some guests and never picked it back up.
Although, I did manage to pick up few more of these delights
and cram them in my mouth... oy!


And now with those lil' delights gone from my reach, I finally got around to taking some photos of some of the gifts we received.

With a few gift cards we received to buy some things

we still needed or wanted,

we treated ourselves to "his & hers" diaper bags.

And now the packing begins...

Yes, that's right... JB bought me those sock monkey slippers to wear at the hospital.

He's funny like that.

And I made sure I have a selection of my favorite lotions and body wash... just in case I have the energy after giving birth to care.

And of course, something special to bring the lil' guy home in.

The white blanket in the back is the same one I brought my other son, Theron, home in over fifteen years ago. It has little blue birds on it and was sent to me from my grandmother several years before she passed away.

So, this may very well be my last blog entry until after baby "J's" birthday.
I'll try to update again, but I can't make any promises.
I hope everyone is well and I'll be back soon...

Lots of love,
Ralonda

my personal escort...

Meet Buddy...

He's a good dog.

He's a mix between a German Shorthaired Pointer and a Brittney Spaniel.
Buddy is about 7 years old.
Buddy would never harm a thing... not even a fly.
Well, actually one of his favorite past times is catching bugs.
In fact, his name was almost Bugs when JB adopted him at about 4 months of age... but my step-son, Jackson, insisted on "Buddy".
But other than that gross little hobby, he's all bark.

He too is a tad overweight... it's my fault.
I just have a weakness for feeding the people... errr, I mean, the things I love good food.
Ok, enough about Buddy's weight... he's happy and that's all that matters, right? I mean, I have a good friend who calls a little extra weight, "happy pounds"... and I'm sure we all have 'em. There's nothing wrong with a few extra "happy pounds" on anyone!

Now, back to my point here...

Buddy has become my personal escort and bodyguard since we found out we were expecting back in March.

At first, I didn't think anything of it. I just thought that for some strange reason he, all of a sudden, wanted to sleep and hang out under our bed. His barking at anything and everything... and sometimes nothing also became excessive. I still didn't catch on.

It was only after I realized that every time I got up to move around the house he was up and in front of me. He would even race ahead to catch up to be the "leader" and look back to make sure I was still following. And then it hit me... he's escorting me to the kitchen, to the bathroom, and to put laundry away. If for a moment he gets distracted and looses sight of me, he'll come searching and pick up where he left off.

It's the weirdest thing.

It's also sometimes a bit annoying.

I did actually look it up and yes, it's a fact that although dogs might not know exactly what is going on, they can sense and even smell a change in a woman when she becomes pregnant. They can become extra clingy and cuddly. They can become obsessed with smelling you (he sometimes will do this too) and they can become extra protective and want to escort you around everywhere.

And although it's a bit annoying at times, I've never had a personal escort... So, for the last remaining 3 weeks (more or less), I'll try to enjoy it... even cherish it.

After all, in his mind he's doing his job... and he's doing a good job at that!

Good boy, Buddy!

xo

Ralonda

pumpkin spice muffins...

Pumpkin Spice Muffins with Brown Sugar Crumble and a Cream Cheese Drizzle... Oh Lord please help my thighs!

I actually made my own pumpkin puree for these babies.

And let me say, when re-heated in the microwave they compliment your morning coffee nicely... mmmm

See all the fresh pumpkin flavor?

I actually made these the other day and was going to wrap each one up and share with my favorite people... but these days there's no sharing for this pregnant lady! Maybe I'll try the sharing thing again for Christmas. By then, the baby will be here and hopefully I'll give a hoot what is sticking to my thighs.

*Pumpkin Spice Muffins with Brown Sugar Crumble and a Cream Cheese Drizzle*

For the muffins...

~3 cups all purpose flour

~1 1/2 tablespoon baking powder

~1/2 tsp. salt

~1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

~1 tsp. ground cinnamon

~1/2 cup butter, melted

~1/2 cup sugar

~1/2 brown sugar

~2 eggs

~1 tsp. vanilla

~1/4 cup milk

~1/4 cup heavy cream

~1 cup pureed pumpkin

For the crumble...

~1/4 cup brown sugar

~2 tablespoon all purpose flour

~1/2 tsp. cinnamon

~1 tablespoon butter, melted

For the drizzle...

~1 cup powdered sugar

~2 ounces softened cream cheese

~dash of ground cinnamon

~splash of milk or cream, if needed... I used several "splashes"

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray regular muffin tin with cooking spray.

2. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice. Set aside.

3. Using a mixer, mix the butter and sugars until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla and mix until combined. Alternate adding the dry ingredients and the milk and cream. Add pumpkin puree. Do not overmix.

4. Divide batter evenly between the muffin tins, filling to the very top and a little over.

5. In a small bowl, mix together the ingredients for the crumble. Crumble on top ov each muffin batter. Bake for about 25 to 30 minutes or until cooked through and lightly browned. Transfer to wire rack to cool sightly.

6. In a small bowl, mix together the ingredients for the glaze. Drizzle over the tops of the muffins.

Enjoy!

xo
Ralonda

bruschetta chicken bake...

I got this recipe from my Fall issue of Kraft Food & Family. I will say, although I love getting my quarterly issue of Kraft Food & Family, I was a little less than pleased with the recipes offered this go round... but I needed something quick, easy and here's the magic word these days, different for dinner last night. By the time dinnertime rolls around, this ol' 9 month pregnant body is pooped out and standing on my already swollen tootsies is less than appealing. So, needless to say we've been eating take-out a lot and I'm grossed out just sitting here thinking about it.

This recipe met my requirements and it tasted good. However, I thought (as well as JB) that it was a little on the dry side. So, if I happen to make it again I would add a can of tomato sauce or possibly a can of cream of chicken, or cream of mushroom soup to the chicken layer for moisture.

*Bruschetta Chicken Bake*

1 can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 pkg. (6 oz.) Chicken Stuffing Mix
1/2 cup water
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces... or like me, you could just pick up a rotisserie chicken from the grocery and pull the meat from the bone.
1 tsp. dried basil leaves
1 cup mozzarella cheese

~Heat oven to 400 degrees, Mix tomatoes, stuffing mix, water and garlic just until moistened.
~Layer chicken, basil (I added the basil to the stuffing mix) and stuffing in a 13 x 9-inch baking dish.
~Bake 30 minutes or until chicken is cooked through... of if you use the meat from a rotisserie chicken bake until heated throughout and the cheese is melted and bubbly.
~Serve with a green salad.

xo
Ralonda

9 months...

I'm officially 36 weeks along now... which equals 9 months. Aren't I good at math? *big smile*

Anyway, I've still got four more weeks to go until my due date and I'm happy to say that all is good... well, except for maybe the swollen fingers and toes and the fact that I'm always HOT. I'm normally a cold natured gal, but lately it seems, I'm just so darn hot all the time.

I've started my every-week visits to the Dr. now and last week they didn't say anything about my weight gain... which I interpreted as a good thing. *another big smile*

I know the lil' guy has got to be out of room in there by now. Sometimes it feels as if I'm carrying a baby octopus. JB and I find it funny that when I lay on my back he'll move over to my right side and cause my belly to be lopsided... it's the funniest thing.

I'm also officially in the nesting stage... and the worst thing about that is, it's so hard to move around like I'd like too to get things done.

Everyone else is good and is getting excited about the big day and having this little guy home to love on.

xo
Ralonda

pie night...

Scrumptious Apple Pie & Cheeseburger Pie

A couple of weeks ago we had an evening of pie... and I believe if everyone had an evening of pie the world would be a better place.

First, we had Paula Deen's Cheeseburger Pie. If you're anything like me, and on occasion get tired of the ol' traditional hamburger bun and all its thickness, then this is a nice alternative.

Not to mention they're fun to make and taste delicious.

But once again, this is what it's really all about for me... and after I give birth to this lil' guy in about 5 weeks and I regain some energy other than raising a fork to my lips, I've got many, many uphill miles to walk on the treadmill.

This is PW's Scrumptious Apple Pie. And let me just say, this pie could be the answer to world peace.

Especially when eaten warm with some vanilla ice cream... or the next morning for breakfast with a little bit of coffee... then again for an afternoon snack... and maybe even again for dessert the next night. I'm not saying *I* indulged that many times or anything... I'm just saying, you could if you wanted to. Because after all, with each mouthful a sense of peace and well being would overcome you and all would be right in the world, so no one would blame you if you did indulge a little... or a lot.

*Cheeseburger Pie*

1 lb lean ground beef
1/4 cup sweet onions, preferable Vidalia onion... or omit completely
1 tablespoon steak seasoning
1 tablespoon steak sauce
Your favorite cheese slices
1 sheet frozen puff pastry dough, at room temp. for about 20 minutes
1 egg yolk

~Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

~Mix the ground beef, onion, steak seasoning and sauce together (using your hands is the most efficient way to do this). Form into flat patties. Grill or pan fry the hamburgers to medium-well. Remove and top each burger with a slice of cheese.

~Roll the puff pastry sheet to flatten slightly. Cut into 4 relatively even rectangles.

~Cover each burger with a piece of puff pastry and wrap it around the bottom, pinching all of the edges to seal. Place on a un-greased baking sheet, pinched side down.

~Whisk together the egg yolk and 1 teaspoon water to make an egg wash. Brush each wrapped pastry with egg wash. Bake for about 15 minutes, until the puff pastry is nice and brown.

~Serve with your favorite toppings/condiments.

*Scrumptious Apple Pie*

Pie crust... I used two frozen store bought pie crusts, not PW's "made from scratch" pie crusts
6 to 7 cups peeled and sliced Granny Smith Apples
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1/2 cup sugar
4 Tbsp. flour
1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 cup flour
1 1/2 sticks butter (3/4 cup)
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup quick oats
1/4 salt

1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/2 jar (or more) caramel topping

~In a bowl mix peeled apples, lemon juice, sugar, flour and 1/4 tsp. salt. Set aside.

~Cut the butter into the flour with a pastry cutter, then add in the brown sugar, oats, and salt.

~Divide the apple mixture into the prepared pie crusts and top with crumb topping.

~Cover crust edges with aluminum foil and bake in a 375 degree oven for 25 minutes. Remove foil from crusts (be sure to watch this... my crust edges were already done after 25 minutes so, I couldn't remove the foil) and place back in oven for another 15 to 30 minutes. With 5 minutes remaining top with the pecans and finish baking.

~Remove from oven and top with 1/2 jar (or more) of caramel topping. Allow to cool slightly before serving.

~Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

~Enjoy!

xo
Ralonda