Photo Update

I had so much fun finding other blogs through Laura's link up on Monday! If you're hear from that, welcome :) I'm always happy to have new faces!

Cleaning our house yesterday was my #2 priority yesterday, (Jillian being #1 of course), so I actually didn't even check my email until early this morning. We had some dinner guests and one of them is allergic to cats. I made sure everything was dusted and vacuumed so that his allergies didn't bother him. We had a fun time and I think his allergies were kept at bay!

I feel like I haven't posted many pictures this year, so I thought I'd share a few of my favorites from the last week! Since I got my iPhone in December, I've taken most of my photos with it. In case you missed it, I post most of my photos on my Instagram page. {username: courtcog}

{I'm ready for my Mom-of-the-Year Award!}

{Jillian got stuck between the sofa table and the wall. Being the awesome mom I am, I took a photo before I rescued her ;) At least she wasn't crying at the time!} 

{Jillian's hair is getting so long in the front! I used just a clip to pull it back for the first time the other day. She looks so grown up to me!} 

{She really likes the clips on their cardboard container}

{Also, please excuse the Halloween pj pants. I don't have many to choose from} 

{Jillian has been trying to put her sunglasses on herself lately! This particular time, she missed and they got stuck on the collar of her onesie ;)}

{Watching Winnie the Pooh with her Winnie the Pooh Bear <3} 

{This is the closest to standing independently that I can get her. She is just not interested right now, and that is perfectly ok :)} 

{Looking like a big girl in her new Osh Kosh overalls!}

{Still very jealous of her eyelashes too} 

{Having fun in the new tube I bought her!}

{She had so much fun with the one at the library, I figured it would be worth looking for one. I found a decently priced one at Toys R Us and she is having a ball} 

{I feel like I need to explain this one.}

{This is in the middle of me cleaning yesterday, which included mopping, (hence the mop in my hand). We have a handful of light bulbs that are burned out and we haven't had time/money to replace them yet. So, in order to load/unload the washer and dryer, and do other miscellaneous chores, I have to wear my new headlamp I got for Christmas. I'm sure this looks ridiculous, but it gets the job done ;)}

Happy Wednesday y'all!

Say Hello! Link Up

1. What blogs do you visit daily? Please list 1-3 of your favorites.

I love reading:
Laura at The Everyday Joys
Jessica at You Are My Color
Kim at Latte and a Prayer

2. Are you on Instagram? If so, what is your user name?

Yes; courtcog

3. Can we find you on Pinterest? What's your Pinterest address, and what can we expect to see you pinning most? (recipes, DIY projects, home decor, etc.)

Yes I am. You can find me here, and I mostly pin funny things. {Well, funny to me. There are curse words at times just to warn you in case you find it offensive} I do recipes, clothes, ideas for my daughter, Jillian, things I want to make, and home decor as well.

4. What are your favorite blog link-ups to participate in? (weekly link-ups other bloggers have...any number will do...please link us to them!)

If I do any, they are usually Fab Friday, So What Wednesday, and What I'm Loving Wednesday.

5. Why do you blog?

I mostly blog as a form of journaling. I love going back and reading what happened and how I really felt about it years later. I actually am in the process of organizing my old posts from Xanga and Livejournal as far back as 2004. I enjoy meeting people as well! I sometimes post recipes or other things, but that is pretty rare.

6. Tell us one random fact about yourself.

I can spell anything legibly with curly fries. Why is this so special? I never break the fries. I use what is in my container :) For example:

Link up with Laura today and make some new blog friends!

Pin Success

I thought I'd share my first official, and successful, pin!

I usually only repin recipes if they actually take me to a website with the recipe written out. I was making a brisket dinner last Friday and thought some potatoes would go well. I remember pinning a recipe recently and looked it over.

Parmesan Roasted Potatoes. These potatoes have 5 ingredients, (if you don't include salt and pepper). It was a very easy dish to make. How yummy was it? I had no left overs and Phil's dad got thirds seconds.

I didn't take any photos, {mostly because I was waiting to see if it worked out ok}, so here is the image from Pinterest. However, I highly recommend making this when you get a chance. Easy, tasty, and worth a few extra calories if you're counting ;)

Source: chichoskitchen.blogspot.com via Courtney on Pinterest

You can find the full recipe here.

Happy Cooking!

Trying New Things

Today I wanted to do something new with Jillian. I noticed a local library does a little class/program for babies and thought we could check it out! It started at 9 a.m. and I thought I could get us there with plenty of time because I was waking up early to do my workout. By the time we got to the library, it was 9:10 a.m. Considering the activity only lasts for 45 minutes, I thought it'd be silly of us to walk in so late. I decided we would play/read in the children's section, pick a book or two to take home, then head back.

 {Playing with the bead maze on the wall}

{Reading lots of books}

About the time I was ready to pick up and check out some books, a woman and her twins came over to the play area. Jillian seemed interested in them so I thought we'd stay a little longer. Before I knew it, the class let out and most of the children came over to play. I was worried Jillian was going to get overwhelmed, so I started to pick her up. Then I noticed more mothers and their small children coming in. I asked the twin's mother if there was a class going on. Turns out, the class we missed at 9 a.m. also meets at 10 a.m. and 11 a.m.! Score :D

We ended up staying for the class and we had a blast! The first 20 minutes is play time. There are dolls, puzzles, musical instruments, blocks, cars, and this little fabric tube that Jillian loved crawling thru :) Then we all picked up and sat down in a big circle. The leader sang a few songs like "Baby Hokey Pokey" and "The Itsy Bitsy Spider". Next was wiggle time! All the kids stood up and danced to two songs. Jillian really loved the dancing ;) After that, the leader read a story. Once the story was over, there is a game they play where the children have to guess which colored mitten, (out of 6 mittens), a kitten is hiding under. When they find the kitten, then it's bubble time! The leader has a little bubble machine and goes around the circle twice so that all the kids can get some bubble time. Some of the older kids followed her so closely that she looked like the Pied Piper of Hamelin. HAHA Finally, they sing a goodbye song and it's time to go. 

Jillian and I did stop and pick out two books to take home before we left. Aside from the class being so much fun, I love that you can come as you can. Since you don't sign up for it, you can miss or come to the 11 a.m. instead of 9 a.m. depending on how your schedule works out. Plus, most of the moms were friendly and welcoming.

This was a little bit out of my comfort zone, but I'm proud of myself for not just skipping when I knew I'd be late. Otherwise, Jillian and I would have missed out on something great! Can't wait to go next week :D

That Moment: Catch Up Style

Now that my allergies are temporarily in check, I thought I'd play catch up. I had a vlog I recorded 12 times, but it was too long thanks to my rambling nature. So I decided to do it this way.

That moment when... you notice you don't have many photos from the last 21 days. Jillian has just been so funny that I get caught up watching her instead of scrambling for the camera. Plus, sometimes the moments are so quick that they are over by the time I even get my phone camera ready.

That moment when... you finally feel like you finally have a handle on your schedule. It is a nice feeling indeed.

That moment when... you are thankful to have in-laws that will come babysit your baby overnight so you and your hubby can volunteer at a church lock-out for the youth group! Sure we only got 4 hours of sleep, but we had as much fun as the kids :)

That moment when... you lose your voice for half the day thanks to aforementioned lock-out and allergies. Luckily, with the help of some orange juice, your voice decides to return in the late afternoon.

That moment when... you spend Sunday afternoon not picking up/organizing like you planned because you would rather watch "The Walking Dead" on Netflix.

That moment when... you get hyped up and decide you're going to carpe diem the crap out of Monday morning, only to oversleep instead. Working out at night time it is.

That moment when... you silently laugh in your head at the neighbors for being fools for putting their trash out on a national holiday. Then you realize you're outside because you were in the process of checking the mail. Humility complex activated.

That moment when... your daughter sneezes all over your face and hands as you're typing up your first blog post in almost a week. Looks like I'm gonna need a towel and some Lysol spray.

That moment when... you are so excited about the new finance filing system you created, only to realize that it is painfully similar to the filing system you used at your old job. I must miss working a little bit?

That moment when... planning trip for next year gets exciting because your hubby is turning 30, you're celebrating 6 years of marriage, and it may or may not include a possible trip back to Jamaica :) {Ohpleaseohpleaseohplease}

That moment when... you run out of witty things to say.

Happy Monday y'all!

The Real Me

I know I'm months behind when most of my blog friends did this, but I wanted to do it today :)

If you knew the real me...

• You'd know that I still do the duck face on selfies. And no, I don't regret it. And yes, it's only half joking. I don't care how lame it makes me.
• You'd know that I am really sweet, unless we're playing Phase 10. It better be fast pace and I'd better be winning. Otherwise? I'm a little rude.
• You'd know that I would rather go to Spain for a week than anywhere else in the world.
• You'd know that I can't eat movie theater popcorn with butter. It gives me heartburn and a terrible stomachache.
• You'd know that I'm the only one in my little family that doesn't get really cold feet. My nose gets cold the easiest and that's how I gage how cold I am in general.
• You'd know I tried to be anorexic several times in junior high. I knew I couldn't throw up, so I tried not eating all day. I always caved at dinner time.
• You'd know that I was handed alcohol in class my senior year of high school by someone who decided I needed to stop being a goody goody. It scared the crap out of me, and I had a friend take it home so I wouldn't get in trouble.
• You'd know that I had near panic attacks in the car for the first 3 months of Jillian's life. I was convinced that we would get in a horrible accident and all of us would die. I was not a pleasant passenger up until a month ago.
• You'd know that I'm still not a great passenger in the car. I like to be in control all the time.
• You'd know that I told people I was allergic to coconut as a kid because I hated the taste when I was 6. I still haven't found the courage to try it as an adult.
• You'd know that my humor is very much that of a 13 year old boy. Lots of potty, sex, and stupid jokes. Don't like "That's what she said" jokes? Don't worry, I can hold it in when it's inappropriate.
• You'd know that I actually don't like wine very much. I like the following alcoholic drinks (in no particular order): most beer (except for Miller and Natural Light), champagne, dirty gin martini, straight whiskey, and margaritas.
• You'd know that I could eat chips and salsa every day and never ever get tired of it!
• You'd know that my Arkansas accent comes out on accident and randomly. I don't usually notice it either.
• You'd know that I always have at least 3 projects I'm plotting in my head at any given time. Right now? I'm thinking about Jillian's big girl room, our living room, and Jillian's birthday party.
• You'd know that I don't mind cleaning the bathroom at all. The chore I despise is taking out the trash. Luckily, Phil doesn't mind doing that at all.
• You'd know that, even though I dissected a cat in high school with no issue, I loathe having to dig out the innards of turkeys. In fact, I usually use medical gloves and I still can't really look while I do it. It is disgusting and creeps me out!
• You'd know that I am a loyal and loving friend as long as you let me :)

2013 Word and Verse

As I have done before, I have taken some time to think about how I want to approach the year. In years past, I have chosen words like "obey" and "know". This year, I'm going a slightly different direction.

"Clothe" will be the word I want to exemplify as much as I can for the year. It seems like a strange word, but it makes more sense with the verse I have to go with it:

"So, chosen by God in this new life of love, dress in the wardrobe God picked out for you: compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength, discipline. Be even-tempered, content with second place, quick to forgive an offense. Forgive as quickly and completely as the Master forgave you. And regardless of what else you put on, wear love. It's your basic, all-purpose garment. Never be without it." Colossians 3:12-14 MSG {via}

This verse really stuck out to me months ago and I can't seem to get it out of my head. It is bookmarked on my Bible app too. I reread it a few times and felt this is what needed to be my drive for the year. Plus, I'm starting to get an idea of what my style is and how I want to dress. {Late bloomer say what?!} I loved how it said "regardless of what else you put on, wear love". It is so easy to get caught up with the latest fashion trends or the kind of life/style/house/body you want. However, the most important thing to get caught up in is love. Showing love to others whether they deserve it or not. Treating people lovingly by not judging them or hurting their feelings purposefully.

Now, I'm not saying it's going to be easy. "Even-tempered" and "content with second place" are two of my few many flaws. I do feel like God led me to this particular passage because I need to work on it. I mean, if I was good at it, I wouldn't really be a human being. {AmIright?}

Favorite Videos of Jillian

In honor of Jillian's 13 month birthday, I thought I'd share a few short videos of my favorite gal :)
Enjoy!


{This was when she was first crawling. I thought the Pack n Play would keep her out of mischief, but it usually just upset her}


{The day my parent's left to go home in October, she was just having so much fun with my mom}


{This is from Monday. Her laugh is just infectious!}

Hope y'all have a lovely weekend!

Fab Friday 1/11

1) First and foremost, my scratched up eye healed on its own!! I cannot tell you what a relief it is to not have a procedure done. In fact, the doctor was pretty impressed with how well it healed! Dr. G thought there would at least be a smallish scar and most likely there won't be one :) Way to go right eye! HAHA I do have to continue my eye drop regimen through the weekend, but that'll be easy. Plus, I'm glad to have found a good eye doctor so close to our new house!

2) Phil and I had a nice sit down talk last night and I'm feeling a little less overwhelmed. With all the new stuff toys and books Jillian got for Christmas, I was at a loss of where to put it all. After a talk, we have idea of how we're going to organize her room/our living room. It'll take a little time because we need to save up money for stuff like a bookshelf and dresser for Jillian's room. However, it's nice to have a plan!

3) I have officially completed the first 2 weeks of Couch-to-5K. I didn't want to jinx it by mentioning it too soon. However, I'm doing well and I have a good feeling I'm going to get it done! All I have to do is sign up for a 5K and I'll be all set :)

4) Jillian has been sleeping from 8 or 9 at night until 7:15 am the past 3 nights! I think we finally figured out how to make her comfortable enough to sleep. She had been waking up a few times at night starting while we were in Minnesota. We wondered if it was just because it wasn't her crib at home, but she did it at home too. Now she's doing really well! Jillian will fuss a little if she wakes up to move around, but she goes back to sleep within 10 minutes. A good night's sleep for the whole family? Yes please!

What is Fab about your Friday? Link up with Laura!

2013 To-Dos

I'm still thinking about my word and verse for the year, but I am finished with my to-do list! I thought I would share it today since I'm still working on getting back into the swing of things.

2013 To-Do List
1) Go on 6 dates with Phil* {Completed. Dates blogged here, here, here, here, here, and here.}
2) Crawl Walk Jog my first 5K {Jogged Run Lucky 5K 3/10 post here and Camp Wannarunamileormore 5K 4/6 post here}
3) Find a dentist and go in for an exam {Scheduled for 12/19} On hold until our insurance gets sorted
4) Find an eye doctor and go in for an exam {Scheduled for next year}
5) Make 1 dessert each month {Completed}
6) Organize Jillian's toys {As best I can - Completed}
7) Fix attic ladder {Won't be happening this year... whomp whomp}
8) Create storage area in attic {Completed 7/16}
9) Go to Branson {8/31-9/1 Briefly mentioned here}
10) Discuss and decide the future of our little family with Phil {Discussed, decided, and completed}

*A date is defined by the following factors: I wear make-up, we have a babysitter, and we get back after Jillian is in bed. I also said 6 because I just want that many for the year. It can be 6 weeks in a row or once every other month. As long as we get six, that's all that I care about :)

Now, I've already accomplished half of #4 because of my emergency eye appointment on Tuesday. However, I do still want a regular exam since my last one was 4{ish} years ago.

I can't make promises about how often I'll update, because I'm not sure how often I'll do it. Hopefully, I will update shortly after accomplishing the task. {Though in the spirit of honesty, I mostly like won't post about #10 since it's private. You'll know the answer when we feel it's appropriate :)}

Hope your resolutions and/or hopes for the new year are going well so far!

Holy Cow

If you follow me on Twitter, I mentioned that something really really embarrassing happened to me on Sunday. I'm thankful that it's funny now, but it took until today to be able to talk about it outside of my immediate family.

Well, also the fact that something crazy has happened to me everyday since I got home from Minnesota. I've had a good day so far today, so I think it's safe to mention :)

On Sunday, I wore a skirt my mom gave me over Christmas. It fit pretty well and looked cute. A few hours after church, I headed to the grocery store to stock up our fridge. I was there for about an hour by the time I got to the check out line. There was a younger, (early 20's), couple in front of me and a middle-aged man with his preteen daughter behind me. As I start to place my food on the belt, I felt something brush my back. I stopped to figure out what it was. It was my skirt falling to the floor.

You read that correct. My skirt was on the floor.

Thankfully, I was wearing tights. Thankfully, I think only the preteen girl and possibly the man in the younger couple even noticed. I was mortified. No, I was beyond that. The problem? I had to stay and get our groceries. There was no other option for me but to pull up my skirt and keep going. You better believe I checked my skirt's whereabouts every three items. Tugging at it to make sure it didn't happen again.

Monday I tried starting a diet to get me over a weight plateau I've been stuck on for awhile. Well, by lunch time I was starving. I put in what I had eaten and what I was going to have for dinner and it was a grand total of 900 calories. Yes, 900 calories. I decided I wasn't that desperate and ate a small bowl of cereal. I was grouchy until after dinner, but it was worth not starving myself.

Yesterday, I took Jillian to her speech therapy. She did very well and even said "cup" audibly! I was so proud :) As we were getting our stuff together to leave, she smacked me in the right eye. I cannot express how much it hurt. I knew she had scratched my eye, but I didn't know how bad it was. I called Phil from the parking lot and begged him to find an eye doctor to see. I was squeezed in within an hour and found how just how bad she got me. Let's just say, it's not a good sign when the doctor says "oh wow" when they start looking at your eye. She did a good number on me. I go back Friday to see how it's healing. Dr. G said most of these type of wounds heal on their own. However, worst-case-scenario is that he has to remove some of the skin Jillian scrapped. This would make my eye hurt a little worse momentarily, but it would make my eye heal smoothly. Seeing an eye doctor was on my to-do list for the year, so I'm glad I found a good one :) Jillian just sped up the process. Nothing like a first impression, right? I have some antibiotic drops as well as a pain eye drop to keep me comfortable for now.

Like I said early, today is going much better so far. Hopefully my string of bad luck is past me! Hope y'all are having an easier week than I am.

Happy to be Home

We made it home! After quite a few interesting events in the car, I can safely say I drove with Jillian by myself from KC to OKC. It would not be my first choice to do it again, but I know I can.

It seems goodbyes do not get any easier for me. {Well, it's easier in the sense that I don't blubber like a baby as soon as I drive out of my parents' sight.} My heart aches and I feel like time cruelly sped up those few days we had together. Unless my parents live in the same 100 mile radius as me again, I may always feel like this. I'll be a little down in the dumps for the next 2-3 days. I'll be re-watching Gilmore Girls for the umpteenth time. However, I'll get back in the swing of things. I'll begin to miss them only a little as much as normal. I'll look at the calendar date for their next visit and look forward to seeing them face to face once more. I'm truly a lucky girl to love and be loved by my immediate family as much as I do and am :)

New Start

Happy 2013 to you!

I've noticed my Google Reader is full of my favorite blogs discussing the new year. Resolutions, goals, recaps, etc. It's been fun reading what everyone has experienced and what their hopes and dreams for the year are.

As I have done before, I am taking the first 2 weeks of January to prayerfully come up with my word and verse for the year. I also will have a short to-do list for the year that I will share once I figure it out completely.

Phil flew home today and I already miss him. He has to be at work tomorrow or else he would have come home with us. Jillian and I will drive with my parents down to KC on Friday, then we'll be home again by Saturday night, weather permitting. Even though our trip was just about 2 weeks long, it never seems like long enough. I'm so thankful for my family and the fact that I love spending time with them :)