Prince Logan

Hear ye, Hear ye!
I would like to introduce Logan Allen Rankin!

Logan was born on Thursday, August 27th at 4:51 p.m. He weighed 8.1 pounds, measures 21 inches long, and has a full head of brown hair.

Brian and I arrived at the hospital at 7 a.m. on Thursday morning for an induction. When we got there I was already at a 3 and having contractions. The doctor broke my water at 9:30 and I received an epidural at 12:00. When the doctor broke my water he predicted 5:27 p.m. for the time of delivery, but Logan arrived at 4:51 p.m. It is amazing how close he really was! I had an awesome delivery nurse who was a big help to Brian and I. Both my labor and delivery were great, and we have a healthy miracle to prove it.

Brian and I have survived the first two nights and enjoying every minute with Logan!

Stuffed Mexican Pasta Shells

Do you have leftover taco meat, or just looking for a new Mexican recipe? If so, I have the perfect recipe for you to try! I honestly cannot remember where I got this recipe, but if it was from one blog friends I apologize for not giving you credit. This recipe is so simple, delicious, and easy to follow!

1. Start boiling your Jumbo Shells (however many you think you'll need).

2. Add cream cheese (however much you want) to your taco meat in a skillet. (My taco meat contains beef, taco seasoning, Mexican beans, onions, and petite diced tomatoes.)

3. Spread 1/2 c. of taco sauce in the bottom of a greased dish.

4. Stuff your cooked pasta shells with the taco meat and cream cheese mixture, and place in dish.

5. Cover stuffed shells with desired amount of taco sauce.

6. Cook covered for 15 min. at 350.

7. Uncover, sprinkle with cheese and crushed tortilla chips, cook for 10 more min. at 350.

I love this recipe because each time I make it I do something a little different. Let me know how you spice your dish up! (You'll notice there is fried okra on the plate because we eat fried okra with anything!)

(Not a great picture, but the good camera is packed away in the hospital bag.)

MIA

Yes, I have been MIA for the past week. The beginning of school is kicking my butt! I am usually exhausted after the first few days, but this is a whole different type of exhaustion. Now with the baby coming any day now I will be MIA again...hopefully starting tonight! But, I am back for now and I know you have all been on the edges of your seats!

My Husband Rocks!

Every Friday, Katie over at Bring on the Lloyds writes an entry titled "My Husband Rocks!" Every week when I read her entries, I think about what I would write that week if I had a blog. I promised myself if I ever started a blog I would be a copy cat and have these entries as well. So, here it goes...

It is very hard for me to choose one thing to write about. My husband, Brian, is a wonderful guy who I appreciate more everyday, but this week he did something for me that he really didn't want to. He went with me to my breastfeeding class! There were 8 other women there and 5 of us brought our "birth partners". I am sure the other five guys in that room didn't want to be there either! Reasons I wanted him to go with me: 1) Brian's job doesn't allow us to spend a great deal of time together, and last night he had the night off. If breastfeeding class is where we get to spend time together then so be it! 2) The class ended at 9 pm and was in Manhattan. Not only did I not want to drive into Manhattan by myself 2 weeks from my due date, but I really didn't want to drive home alone in the dark. I know...I am a weinie. 3) I truly wanted Brian to hear and learn what I heard and learned. He totally understood all 3 of these reasons and agreed to go with me. You know what? He asked more questions then I did! When we left the class he actually said, "I am glad I went. I learned a lot!" And you know what else? He meant it. For all of this, MY HUSBAND ROCKS! (He also agreed to stop at Tad's for shaved ice on the way home...so he double rocked last night!)

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Thanks to Katy Lin over at The Great Adventure for starting My Husband Rocks and for Katie over at Bring on the Lloyds for "letting" me copy your idea!

Summertime!

My Grandpa Allen is the Master of Gardening. His fall, winter, and spring months are spent thinking (talking) about and planning for his summer garden. He doesn't have as big of a garden as he used to, but it is still full of more vegetables then I would know what to do with! To his disappointment I am not much of a vegetable eater. Well, I take that back. I will eat almost anything that comes out of his garden but tomatoes, and the tomatoes are his pride and joy. Last summer I went with him nearly every Saturday morning to sell tomatoes at Clay's Farmer's Market.

When summertime rolls around I always think of three things: Grandpa's garden, Grandma's cooking, and Flav-or-ices (but those are beside the point...)! Creamed peas and potatoes...green beans with bacon...fried okra...Mmmm! Last week Brian and I went over and got some okra. (We planted some but it didn't come up for some reason.) Today, we fried it for lunch! A little flour, Panko bread crumbs, and seasoned Fish Fry...Mmmm! We ate every last bite, but I thought I would at least share a picture...

Can't you almost taste it?!

Siamese...Carrots?

This is what happens when carrots are planted too close together...

Lovely, right? Needless to say, we didn't eat this one. I refused. I don't care if it is okay to eat.

Megan's Spicy Chicken Spaghetti Bake

My friend Megan recently gave me a new recipe that I have made twice. Brian and I both agree it is one of the best "casseroles" EVER and have decided to make it a staple on the Rankin Supper Idea List. So, without further ado...

The Ingredients:
2 big cans of chicken

2 cans of Rotel

2 cans Cream of Chicken soup

1 lb. of Velveeta

1 med-large green pepper

1 med-large onion

1/4 c. butter

1 pkg. spaghetti noodles

As you can see, I didn't follow the recipe exactly. I halved it for Brian and I, used "fun" noodles (but a few more than half the package), added corn because we had it, and crushed saltines on top before baking.



Step 1: Begin boiling you noodles. (Can add chicken bouillon is desired.)
Step 2: Dice and saute the green pepper and onion in the butter.


Step 3: Add the chicken (drain), Rotel (drain), Cream of Chicken soup, and Velveeta to the veggies. Cook until the Velveeta is melted. I added the corn at this time.





Step 4: Drain the noodles.
Step 5: Combine the noodles and other ingredients.
Step 6: Serve and eat OR bake at 350 degrees for 15-30 minutes (I baked mine for 20 min. in a 9x13 Pyrex).

Final DELICIOUS Product:

Is this a healthy meal? No, but I am telling you, TRY IT! You will love it-Promise! I have decided next time (which may be next week) that I will substitute cream cheese for some of the Velveeta. I just think it sounds good!

Big thanks to my mom who provided the chicken and Cream of Chicken soup...She didn't know it, until now, but I "shopped" in her pantry last weekend. These are the only 2 things I took-Promise!

Bathroom Makeover

I know you are probably getting tired of all the house makeover entries, but prepare yourself because there are more to come! When we tiled our dining room we went ahead and did the spare bathroom too. Brian chose the tile and I was really nervous about it being too dark, but I was pleased with how it turned out. Brian liked the tile, but thought the grout was too light so he stained it with a toothbrush! Nuts! Of course, Brian thought I was nuts when I decided to paint the walls one shade darker than I had originally painted them. We're both nuts! So, here are the before and after shots of the spare bathroom:

Before:

After:

A big thanks goes to Kyle for running to Home Depot and buying us another box!

28 Days and Counting....

This is the first of many posts starring Baby Boy Rankin. It feels like I have been pregnant forever! I have had a fairly easy pregnancy... no morning sickness, but I have had my fair share of uncomfortable days, fatigue, backaches, and swelling. (Speaking of swelling...for those of you who saw my unfortunate cankles at Kara's wedding, I just have to say that it took until Thursday for those bad boys to go down! But, I would do it again for Kara and Matt and will be blogging about their wedding soon!) Through it all Brian and I have become closer, and really excited about being parents. Brian has been very supportive of me through this and will be a fantastic dad. I am super excited about seeing him with this little guy...

28 Weeks (His eyes are open...creepy!):

35.5 Weeks:

Garage Makeover

This past week there was an unusually cool morning so Brian and I decided to take advantage of it and give the garage a makeover. When we moved in we pretty much lined the garage walls with anything we didn't feel like unpacking or putting away. When you only have a one car garage this doesn't leave a lot of wiggle room. We can't believe how clean it is, and keep opening up the door just to look at it! I kicked myself afterwards for not taking a before picture, but I think you can probably imagine. So, you only get to see the "After" photos. Sorry!

Wouldn't our dads be proud?!?!

When we started going through everything we ran across a tote of "gear" we took on our honeymoon! There was a bag of sunscreen, bug sprays, flip-flops, aloe vera, snorkeling gear, etc. Most of this we decided to toss or price for our garage sale, but it was still fun to go through. So, because I didn't have this blog a year ago, I am posting a few photos from our honeymoon in Jamaica.

Brian and I ready for supper:

Every morning when we went to the beach, there was a hut reserved and ready for us. It was ready with a stocked cooler, towels, and decorated with flowers. If we ran out of beverages or wanted a snack we called up our butler on the cell phone the resort provided for us. Sick, huh?!? Here is a picture of Brian lounging in our hut. If you look closely you can see our cooler and our snorkel gear inbetween the chairs. Brian and I decided this is what Heaven will be like!

I questioned my decision to add the last photo (because of the lack of clothing...), but I had to because heck, this is what we looked like 95% of the time we were in Jamaica! Plus, it makes me smile! We couldn't have asked for a better start to married life!