Crock Pot Sweet Aromatic Chicken

A mouth watering aroma filled our house this past Sunday as we arrived home from church.
Soon we were seated around the table filling our mouths and bellies with this delicious chicken.

Crock Pot Sweet Aromatic Chicken
1/2 cup coconut milk
1/2 cup water
1 1/2 pounds chicken, skinned (boneless or with bones)
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1/8 -1/4 tsp ground cloves
2 - 4 garlic cloves, minced
Combine milk and water. Pour into a greased crockpot. Add remaining ingredients in order. Stir to combine. Cover and cook on high for 4-6 hours.

When the chicken is finished, use the remaining juices to make a wonderful gravy to drizzle over the chicken and pour on top of rice or mashed potatoes. Simply place the sauce in a small pan and thicken on the stove with cornstarch or flour.

Note: If you increase the chicken, simply increase the other ingredients accordingly to keep the chicken nice and moist.

Pregnancy Update ~ 23 Weeks

It's hard to believe that I've already sailed past the halfway point in this pregnancy. Our recent move and trying to get settled into our new home and routine have made the time fly by.

This pregnancy, so far, has been similar to my previous two and fairly uneventful. After a couple weeks of being overly tired I could hardly tell I was pregnant. Then at 19 weeks my milk supply began to drop. At this point, Tim and I decided that Emahry was ready to give up her final nursing session. It's now been almost a month, my milk supply has returned and Emahry has only asked to nurse twice.

Now at 23 weeks, I can definitely tell that I'm carrying another little blessing. The maternity clothes have been brought out and all night aerobic classes have once again begun meeting in my belly.

So far all of my test results have come back good. Today we finally get to go in for my second ultrasound. Hopefully we'll be able to see all of the organs and everything will look good. I'm also hoping we'll get confirmation of the baby's gender.

Please, continue to pray that the new baby and I will remain healthy and safe during the rest of this pregnancy.

I Spy Quilted Play Mat

At the beginning of the summer I decided I'd like to make an I Spy Play mat for the kids. For those of you who have never heard of such a thing, an I Spy quilt or play mat is simply a large assortment of printed fabric with which children can play I Spy. For example, I spy a green lizard or I spy a striped umbrella.

I didn't have nearly enough different materials in my fabric stash, so I sent out a few emails to fellow crafters. My Aunt Linda, a quilter, sent me a package full of fabric scraps that worked perfectly for this project. I also received a lot of the fabrics from Tim's Mom, or Maw as we call her. (Thank you both so much!!)

After a few days of planning and a lot of cutting, I started piecing together the top of the playmate. I decided to make the finished squares 3 1/2 inches and to sew them into a 9 square by 9 square play mat.


This past week I sewed the majority of them together. I still have to attach the top row of squares, but I'm waiting on the top left square. I'd like to get a plain piece of fabric and embroider a magnifying glass and the words "I Spy..."

So far, I'm very happy with how this play mat is turning out, especially since this is my first time doing any type of patchwork or quilting.

There are a few places where the corners of the squares don't line up exactly, but they are so few that I can very easily live with them.

Emahry already likes playing with the quilt, even though it's not finished. She's pretty good at finding the things I spy, but hasn't quite grasped the concept of getting me to look for things.

Here are a few links if you'd like more information or inspiration to make your own I Spy Quilt.

Mini I Spy Quilts :: Make and Takes

I Spy Quilts on Flickr

I Spy Quilt :: The Thrifty Home

You can even buy packages of pre-cut I Spy quilt squares online at Etsy.

I'd love to hear what you think about I Spy quilts. I'd also love to read about your latest crafting adventures.

Happy Fall!

The kids and I finally found time to get outside and take some fall photos. I had forgotten how difficult it is to get both little ones looking at me and smilin at the same time.



We hope that each of you are enjoying this season.



God Bless!

First Haircut

Jonathan was long overdue for his first haircut before I got up the nerve to pull out the scissors.

Here's a before shot.

Yeah, it was BAD!

So, we strapped him into his booster seat, loaded his tray with cereal, and went to work.

Here's what our handsome little boy looks like with his new do.

These Boots...

...are made for walking, running, jumping, dancing, hopping, playing -- kids.

Emahry received these boots a few weeks ago from See Kai Run and she loves them. We're still waiting for the cooler months of winter, but she already wants to wear these boots.

Thankfully, I couldn't be more pleased with them either. They are perfectly designed for growing feet by allowing room to move but also offering enough support. I also love the easy on, side Velcro closures. These boots are a perfect wardrobe staple since they are so versatile. I'm sure Emahry will be wearing these with jeans, skirts, and everything in between. Another added bonus is the fact that these boots are designed for girls or boys, so if Emahry doesn't completely wear them out, I'm sure they will be on Jonathan's side of the closet in a year or so.

Again, we have been impressed with the quality construction of the See Kai Run shoes. Tim and I love how flexible the soles are. They are rubber and sturdy, but bend easily for toddler movement. The shoe itself is made of soft leather. We are really enjoying these shoes. The only negative we could find is the price. At $46 these shoes are definitely an investment, but the quality will not leave you disappointed.

See Kai Run carries shoes in toddler sizes 3-9 in their See Kai Run line. They also carry shoes for babies 0-18 months old in their Smaller line and toddler size 9 to kid size 3 in their Eleven brand.
Here are a couple of our favorite looks from each brand from See Kai Run's new fall/winter line.

Click on the photo to get more details from the online source or visit http://www.seekairun.com/ for lots of other great options.

Smaller

See Kai Run

Eleven

Head on over the See Kai Run to check out more great shoes.