one year ago...

*I started this post yesterday and never had the time to complete it. So one year ago was literally one year and one day. :)*

I went to the OB doc to see how Lucy bug was doing on July 21st last year. It was incredibly hot and I was incredibly pregnant and miserable. Dr. Mills hooked me up for the non-stress test, told me I was having contractions (much to my surprise), and he told me that I was already dilated to 4cm. As a back story here, I broke my pelvis in a car accident at 18 and was told then never to have natural childbirth because it would likely cause another break. My plan, whether I liked it or not, should be a c-section. So, Dr. Mills tried to talk me into delivering her that day, but I just wasn't having it. I am a planner, and unless I literally went into labor and started feeling the contractions or my baby was in danger, I wasn't having a baby until my scheduled time. Besides being a planner, I'm a bit stubborn.

Needless to say, my daughter cooperated and kept her cute little bun in my oven until I wanted, July 24th. At least she listened then. :D It feels like so much longer than a year in many ways. It's odd to think of my life before her. And yet, I can't believe that she has grown so fast. I can't believe how smart and strong and beautiful she is. She obviously still looks like a baby but she also is just too beautiful to be called cute. This year has been wonderful. We've had it lucky and I try to remind myself of this fact when we have one bad day out of twenty. She's perfect. She's everything I ever wanted. And she definitely reaffirms to me that this is exactly what God called me to do in life. I know each child is different, but because being a mommy is the best thing I ever did, I'll keep doing it. I'm still planning on having that house-full of kids, no matter how crazy you all think I am. My cup runneth over....

<>< Cassie

another day-to-day

I thought that being at home full-time would give me an opportunity to accomplish more and hopefully get my house organized, if only for a hot minute. I never for a second thought that being a SAHM would be easy. I did however believe, logically, that if I was at home more, I would be able to spend a little more time on my home and getting things organized in a fashion suitable to me. I WAS SO WRONG! Moving on...

As of next week, literally all of my girlfriends will be gone from Chattanooga. My BFF is moving to Oregon, another is in D.C., and still another just moved to Kentucky. I had girlfriends at work, but mostly we went to lunch together and didn't really hang out otherwise or chat on the phone much. I miss them too but nothing can replace my Amanda, my Amy, and my Holly. And to be honest, I'm the only one of my friends with a child, which has made things significantly different anyway. I like thinking that maybe I can be there for them one day because I've "been there, done that."

But enough ranting, now for some pleasantries: I joined a new mommy group last week on meetup.com and we have our first play-date tomorrow morning. I have to say, I am incredibly excited for the chance to meet other mommies and for Lucy to have some more interaction. My poor husband has heard little else for weeks (without complaint, which makes him more amazing) and I can't wait!

Also, I found a lady to take Lucy's birthday pictures for a very reasonable price and I'll own the rights to the photos, so I can have as many printed as I would like. The photographer wants to update her portfolio and I will benefit greatly! Lucy is such a ham, I'm sure she'll be a great model for the pictures. It's hard to believe that she's turning 1! Time to think about baby #2....

Have a great day friends!
Much love and many blessings,
<>< Cassie

Recipe Issues

I have always thought of myself as a great cook. I can come up with something from practically nothing and it's beyond edible, it's usually quite yummy. However, I have recently encountered a rather difficult obstacle: my husband has celiac and now we must live a gluten-free life (well technically, he does, not "we"). Thankfully, there are lots of companies recognizing the necessity for gluten-free foods. My biggest complaint is the general yuckiness of pre-packaged foods that are gluten-free. This is really only an obstacle for his lunches because I can conform most of my recipes to make them gluten-free. I just want new recipes. I want to try new things and tweak them to make them my own. Any recipe suggestions are appreciated! Thanks lovely readers.

Happy Friday!

And the blog hop begins, in no particular order:













So I'm not 22 anymore, but I'm living the housewife life now and I feel entitled to join! :)

Happy Friday to you all my friends! It seems that someone lit a fire under me this morning because I've been ever so successful at marking things off of my unrealistic to-do list. Go me! My baby girl's 1st birthday party is planned and now I just need to wrap presents and wait the week until her party. I hope I'm always this on to of things when it comes to my kids and their joy.

I've also been tearing through some books and have definitely enjoyed my reads. Particularly the last two I finished (Love Walked In and Speak). I listened to WAR yesterday as well. I really seem to enjoy a book more when the author reads it. Maybe because they read it in the way that they want it to be interpreted.... if that makes any sense. Anyway, I doubt I'll write a review about it but it was different than my norm and yet, I felt that it was a good insight for me to viewed.

Time for some lunch and to hit that list again, but I want to wish you all a Happy Friday and a wonderful weekend. Check me out and become a follower!

<>< Cassie

Review #7: Dead Until Dark

Dead Until Dark
by Charlaine Harris
336 pages
Grade: C

As many of you know, our world today is ever so slightly vampire obsessed. I include myself in this category and do not feel shame for it. However, because of this I included a few different vamp tales to test out the different story lines. Unfortunately, I wasn't that impressed with Dead Until Dark and doubt very much that I'll continue on with the series. Maybe Twilight ruined me with it's virtue and morals, or maybe I'm just not a sex-crazed maniac. Either way, there are a few things I liked about this book. I liked Sookie for the most part. I liked that she was somewhat simple and naive but that she endured the life she was given. I liked that the author actually killed idiotic bad guys and didn't have any qualms with that. But for the most part, my likes stop there. I was annoyed with the sex and sex and sex because it was mostly cheesy and badly delivered. I disliked that I guessed who the killer was about half way through the book. I disliked that there seemed to be a few twists taken from the Twilight series and therefore it seemed unoriginal. Overall, maybe I'm a book snob or a sex snob for that matter and therefore, I don't recommend this read. It was quick but not really worth it.