7 Quick Takes

In lieu of an opening paragraph.......

I heard somebody mention 7 Quick Takes....

1. Thank You : Because of your incredible prayers our little family survived a very stressful few days so THANK YOU! Ben left early Sunday morning for Virginia and returned Tuesday night - he had good weather, a smooth (albeit long) drive, and a wonderful time down there! Kiddo was an absolute gem and did nothing more than move (a lot). And so we managed to survive the absence of both Ben and my doctor for a few days without going into labor or having a nervous breakdown!

2. Husband : It is hard to believe how long three days can feel. It was just two summers ago that Ben, my fiance at the time, left for England and was gone for a handful of weeks. While his absence was very unpleasant we were able to Skype every day for at least a little bit and we had daily letters to look forward to (because we both thought of the exact same surprise for each other without consulting each other). Those weeks felt like a long time but were survivable and the days went by fairly quickly. A mere two years later I find that three days is just absurd and doing things like taking naps and vacuuming/cleaning multiple times a day just so the time can go by more quickly. And unlike England we had the chance to talk on the phone for much longer periods of time and exchange texts throughout the day. It looks like I have developed a Ben addiction....

3.  "Oh, I can't do this" : This is the thought that runs through my head a few dozen times a day as the due date gets closer and closer (and closer....). Yes, baby Leo is due this upcoming Sunday (February 17) and despite counseling pregnant women for a few years and doing a fair bit of reading, watching videos, and observing I feel absolutely unprepared for the adventure that awaits me! The funny thing is that the labor and delivery are not the things that freak me out the most (probably absolutely because I have not experienced them yet) but things like, oh, I dunno, MOTHERHOOD! I have been surrounded by great examples of motherhood my whole life and have had the privilege of being around my amazing sister-in-law over the past few years, but I am not them and they are not me. All I can say is that I hope God knows what He is doing (good batting average in general, I'll admit) and that He can provide Ben and me with the grace and virtues we will need to raise this precious soul with the love and care he deserves. Your prayers certainly will not hurt :)

4. Due Date : It occurred to me yesterday that Ben and I (and all you wonderful folks!) had spent the past few weeks praying hard that Leo would not make an early debut and would stay put. Now that we have made it past the "Don't Even Think About It, Kiddo!" phase I am hoping that he hasn't gotten it into his head that he ought to stay put, well, indefinitely. I was talking with a friend of mine on the phone the other day and she asked me how I feel about the possibility of being induced. Simply put, no thank you. While I am totally fine with the option of epidurals and pain medications in labor and delivery (yes, I'm evil and clearly do not love my baby enough) it is my strong preference that the whole process go as naturally as possible. So I guess it's time to switch prayer tactics and start giving Leo pep talks on birth. 

5. Recipes : I stumbled upon two delicious recipes this week and they would have made for a great Monday post but I had another recipe in mind for that and so I did not take any pictures. As a result I will share a link to one of them here; the other is my own concoction so no link need to be involved. 

6. "Maryanne's Cornbread" : I have an unreasonable dislike of 9x13 pans and an absurd preference for 8x8 pans and so I got it into my head that I would scale down the recipe to accommodate myself. That is one of the things that I love about All Recipes - easy scaling up or down for your "needs"! Well, scaling that sucker in half resulted in absurd measurements (why in the heck are you supposed to use 1 1/2 eggs?) so I increased the servings to 8 and it gave me what I needed. If you feel like a good laugh you should check out what that recipe looks like when it is scaled down for 8 servings. My favorite has to be the measurements for milk. Anyways, ridiculous as it was the recipe worked out splendidly and I definitely recommend it :)

7. Weirdest Pancakes Ever : I was bored and/or lazy during lunch yesterday and got it into my head that I wanted eggs and cornbread but not separately. So I mixed two eggs together with a slice of the cornbread and added a slice of Jalapeno White Cheddar cheese and pan-fried it. Um, I know that it impossible that I am the first person to combine these ingredients but good grief, I felt like Einstein as I ate that lunch! It was like some sort of Brunch Nirvana. The cheese was mild enough and cornbread sweet enough that it is one of the few foods out there that you could have with either syrup or salsa (though not both). Anyways, if you ever find yourself with leftover cornbread and eggs do yourself a favor and try it out - I do not think you will be disappointed! 

I hope you enjoy your well-deserved weekend and start it off right by heading over and checking out Jen and the other fabulous Quick Takers! 

~ Happy Friday ~