Military Spouse Stereotypes

After recording, a male spouse of a marine, reminded me of another stereotype: that "spouses of service members are all wives". Let us not forget the husbands who put up with all the stuff the military dishes out to their families, too!

What have I left out? We'd love to hear from you! Please link up over at Chances I'm Taking. If you don't wish to vlog, then that's okay, too!

Also, I'm choosing to link up for Military Mondays over at Army Wives Lives. Do you have a recent military related post? Link up and hop around to see what everyone else is talking about this lovely February Monday. Have a great week!

Get your jollies

Well, THAT didn't go as expected as evidenced in these photos from tonight:



That looks like a happy Steelers fan prepping for the big game, doesn't it?



And that looks like some yummy food and a decorated place to celebrate! Let's get a closer look...



Granted, football season is over, but I thought I'd share this with you for next season when you throw a football party. Y'all know, I love to play around in my craft room! I didn't have much to work with, though and I really didn't want to spend much money on this. I ended up only purchasing green craft paper, chalk, and some ribbon. The rest of the materials I had laying around my casa.

To make the table dressing simply roll out some green paper, find the middle and put the fifty yard line there. Then count down the "field" on both sides and voila! You have cheap, easy, and super cute decor for the big game.

I also had fun making a black and gold paper chain and draping ribbon wherever I saw fit. For the helmet in the middle of the field, I got online and googled "steeler helmet printouts". After printing, I got to feel like a kid again and color away! :)

Ya gotta get your jollies somewhere if you're team is gonna let you down! Better luck next year.

California Dreamin'

The weather has been dreadful this week! I bet every single one of you is tired of hearing that, but I mean it just as much as those folks in NY do about the snow. We've been bombarded with something a little less of a pain in the butt, but a lot less pretty, too. Rain, rain, go away, come again another day.

The rain has me day dreaming of sunny California and the couple of days Captain J and I spent there on our trip across America.

Walking the dogs,

Strolling along the pier, hand in hand

Enjoying breathtaking sunsets together,

Exploring giant redwoods,

and Discovering the city.

And to think those Californians were cold! I'm warm just thinking about it. I want a beach and a good book. I want the energy I had in the picture above before I started experiencing all these lovely preggo symptoms. I don't want this rain anymore, soaking my poor puppies to the bone each time I let them out. A girl can dream, right?

Rain, rain, go away. Come again another day.

lil fetus

I wanted to elaborate on yesterday's post about Baby now that I've had time to have it all soak in...

I've mentioned before that I'm terrified of going to the doctor. As a slight hypochondriac and avid pessimist, my thoughts begin to wonder off to all those things that could be wrong and before the doctor even steps in the room, I think I'm dying of some sort of rare disease. It's a problem, I know.

I know because as of now, I'm expected to go to the doctor every single month. EEK!

It's bittersweet, though because while I'm terrified of what news I'll be given, I'm also thrilled to see our baby again.

Yesterday, I had to have the dreaded annual exam before we got to all the fun stuff. I'm praying that all is well with those results, but as you probably know, I won't have those for awhile. I finally calmed down a little (after feeling very violated) and was able to focus on seeing my sweet little fetus.

They couldn't find the heartbeat. I think MY heart stopped beating with the quiet in the room. In fact, they could barely detect my heartbeat on the machine they were using so they moved on to a different one.

With the ultrasound, we could see the little heartbeat and it all felt real at that moment. I couldn't sit up to look because I knew the tears would flow. I was so happy. J was, too. His face inched closer to the screen with a smile a mile wide. Our baby was all over the place! He/She was flipping around and trying to avoid being poked with that cold machine. So active already!

I feel good about my doctor. It's a guy, which I wasn't thrilled with, but he seems knowledgeable, helpful, and really nice. I feel comfortable with him. I hope I get to stay with him because that will mean that I have a normal pregnancy! We'll see!

It's odd. Now, I cannot wait until March 1 to go back to the doctor. I just want to see him/her again and possibly find out the sex.

Thanks for all the well wishes and prayers! I appreciate it so much.

Dressed up for my first date!

I had to get All Dressed Up today...I had a big date! Today was the first day I got to meet my handsome little man or beautiful baby girl. I had to look good, right?

Top: No idea Undershirt: Target Jeans: Forever 21 Belt: I made it!

Shoes: Belk

And now for the extra special thing I'm sportin' today...

Apparently, that's a baby! Just one...for all those who voted that I was having twins, you'll have to guess again. Can I tell you how wonderful it was to see our baby's heartbeat? He or She was so active! They took a ton of pictures but the baby just wasn't enjoying having all that attention. Must be like her/his mama! More on this later.

Love,

You know I like my (steak) chicken fried

In case you're living under a rock, here's The Pioneer Woman's link. I had been perusing her blog for quite some time when my mom surprised me with her cookbook for Christmas.  Love it! She takes you through step by step without leaving imperative information out. Many cookbooks don't smile kindly to the beginner in the kitchen. They use terms I've never ever heard of and I end up having to google how to do it. I shouldn't have shared that. I guess you've figured out by now that I don't try new dishes often.

I have an excellent excuse, though! My husband is a pretty darn good cook and he enjoys doing it- now why would I strip him of this joy for a single night?

Well, he works pretty hard, too. That's why I decided to surprise him with some good ole comfort cookin'. Enter Pioneer Woman Recipes:

Chicken Fried Steak and PW's Creamy Mashed Potatoes

I started off with the potatoes.



This is when I learned that you should probably take off the blue wrapping of the peeler so it works better ;)



Next ya got boil em!



Then drain and add all the yummy extras. Then voila!



Oh, yeah...don't forget to mash them- like I forgot to take a picture of the finished potato product. This one will have to do, but I swear...this was one tasty treat!

Then it was time for the Chicken Fried Steak...and then the gravy, which used to make me shiver in my boots. I was scared to attempt it. My Mimi showed me how once, but that was a long time ago and I've slept since then. Never had I ever tried to make gravy by my lonesome. Anyway, I'm skipping a step. The following are the steak photos:

You'll want to get some plates ready and then get ready to get your hands dirty! You'll need all this and then some-



But all that mess will create these-



After the meat is cooked, PW says to drain the grease and put it off to the side. I did so, but I didn't have nearly enough. I did what any good cook would do, I broke out the bacon!



The bacon helped create sufficient grease for the gravy and also served as a nice addition to the mashed potatoes. Now, add flour, milk,  salt, and pepper and you've got yourself a meal.



Bon appetite!





Can you believe I cooked all that on that old school stove?

Which reminds me, hey land lady...what happened to that new stove/oven unit you were going to install?! Oh, right...The whole world doesn't read my blog.

But the whole world reads The Pioneer Woman's, though. Go check her out!
Happy Cooking,

(Mil)ing It Over- Do you get homesick?

Wanna play along with us this week? Link up with Jenn!

EDIT: She got the linky up and running. Hip, Hip, Hooray!