Not your mama's burgers!

Haven't been on in what seems like forever! I made a pact with myself to stay off the computer on nights that Officer K9 is off (I really need to come up with a better name, I tried Officer Cupcake, he said "No!" "But dear, cupcakes were our wedding cake. Can't we use that name?" "No! Some of the guys wives read this." "Okay." Hmpf! So what is manly? Still haven't figured out one that speaks about us. I'll get back to you.) So, I made a pact that on his nights off I would stay off. Which means I have 2 incredible recipes to share with you! This blog started as a wedding blog, but then we got married so what was a girl to do? It seems it has taken the theme of cooking, but more than just cooking it is our life. What goes on around the K9 house as we figure out this marriage thing, baby thing and LE stuff! He has the LE stuff figured out, just now he has to figure it out as a husband and I have to figure out being a wife of a LE. He's doing great! Asks before picking up OT shifts, sharing only the funny or stupid stories. Me? Well, I am learning to just not ask-you may not like the answer. I am learning to pray on my knees every night for him, Hunter and the other Officers on his crew. I am learning to cook meals that we can enjoy together after I get home but before he rushes off to protect people, and cook food that will last for him to eat later at work whenever he is able to get that dinner break. An important blessing to my learning experience and what helps keep me grounded is the Cop Wives Club I belong to. We meet once a month for brunch and a time of prayer for our husbands and their jobs. It's amazing and so needed! I love the ladies I meet with and it is so nice to be able to have those conversations of what life is like as a wife of an Officer and have someone that gets it. This past Sunday I met with another group that is just getting started and their focus will be on fundraising. I'm excited to see the direction of the group and the helps we can give to local PD's and their families. Now, onto the goods!

I am 33 weeks pregnant now. One of Officer K9's co-workers fiance is in the hospital as I type this laboring, 3 weeks early! This got me panicking, won't lie! What if Baby K9 decided to come early? Are we ready? Ummm...NO! I have had one shower, and it was back home so mostly got clothes and GC's, which we needed! I have 3 showers planned by different groups at the end of the month and hope to receive more of what we need. There is still stuff we need to get and do though in order for baby to come home! So today I called the Fire District in charge of carseat inspection for our county and was given 3 options for an appointment. 1 is next week, the 2nd is the week I have conferences at school (no chance I can miss work) and 3rd was the week before baby is due (way too close!) So we are going next week, phew! I also realized that I need to get packing my bag, babys bag and hubbys bag. Yes, as a wife of an Officer, I realize that if an emergency popped up he may be at work and will need a bag packed so he can change out of his uniform. He does not work near where we live, not terribly far but in an emergency a neighbor or aide car will be taking me to the hospital and he will be meeting us there. We are praying for all things normal and in that case he will make it home! I am going out to buy me some hospital pj's this weekend and the in-laws are bringing up a dresser for us. It was Officer K9's as a baby and now he gets to strip it, sand it and repaint it for his boy!

Now the real goods!
Not your mama's burgers (or also known as Rachel Ray's Burrito Burgers from her March 2009 magazine)
Talk about easy and yum!!!! Officer K9 tested for Sgt this week. If anyone has experienced this, it's stressful! He was up late studying and then had a full day of interviews, exercises etc. He was exhausted by the end of the day and when I asked what he wanted for dinner, he picked these. I couldn't say no! I was so proud of him for testing for this.
Makes 4 burgers
1 lb beef
1 15 oz can black beans, drained & rinsed
1/2 cup leftover rice (I didn't have any and didn't feel up to making any so we skipped the rice)
1 tbl grill seasoning (I used Montreal seasoning)
1 tbl ancho chili powder (I had chili powder in the cabinet and used that, think it's the same????)
1 1/2 tsp ground coriander (only had unground so I used cayenne pepper. It's that same, no?)
1 tbl vegetable oil
1 avocado
1/2 red onion, finely chopped
1 jalapeno or serrano chile, seeded and finely chopped (we like spicy so I left some seeds)
1 clove garlic, grated or chopped
grated peel and juice of 1 lime
1/2 cup sour cream (I used reduced fat)
4 rolls
lettuce
tomato
*I added cilantro for the guacamole

1. In a large bowl combine beef, beans, rice, grill seasoning, chili powder, cumin and coriander.
Form into 4 patties. Now, the patties were a little tricky, the beans in there don't help keep the meat together. I ended up with lots of beans left in bowl.


We love grilled burgers so we grilled. The recipe calls for heating the oil in a pan and cook over med-high heat.

2. While the burgers cook, in a medium bowl, mash together the avocado, onion, jalapeno, garlic, lime peel and juice (I added chopped cilantro too.) Stir in the sour cream.
Now the sour cream kinda was weird. I think it helps to stay on the burger. Think you could do it either way though.
3. The finished product:

We served ours with fries. Yum!

Tonight we had Middle Eastern Stuffed Bell Peppers. Growing up my mom made traditional stuffed bells, meat and ketchup (at least that is what it tasted like to a young child.) I hated them! I found this recipe originally last year in my Women's Health magazine. In the move I lost the magazine but was able to track the recipe on google. Love google! These are super yummy and super easy! Today Officer K9 had to work, so I made everything last night and today he put them in the oven at 4 and they were ready by 4:30. Perfect! Serve with a salad and you have a healthy, nutrition packed meal perfect on short time! They even hold well so Officer K9 took an extra one to work with him for later!
The recipe calls for brown rice, however we love Quinoa. I substituted it when I cooked them last night.

Makes 4+, I used 3 bells but had enough filling leftover for at least 3-4 more. I froze the extra and now we have a quick meal at another day!

4 medium bells, whatever color you like! I love red bells, but usually will buy whatever is on sale, except green-yick!
1/2 lb ground meat (I used ground turkey, came out delicious! I also used the full lb, probably why I had extra!)
1 tsp olive oil
1/2 cup golden raisins
1 8 oz can tomato sauce
1/4 cup sliced green olives
1/2 tsp garlic
1 tsp Cinnamon
2 tsp cumin
1 cup cooked brown rice/cooked quinoa

1. Cut off the top of the bells, clean them and place in a baking dish. Put the tops off to the side. (I used another one of my cast iron dishes, a shallow baking dish works fine for this as well.)
2. Heat oil and brown meat with garlic, Cinnamon and cumin on medium heat. Add raisins and tomato sauce once browned and cook until hot, about 3 minutes.
3. Remove from heat, mix in rice and olives.
4. Place mixture in the bells and replace the tops. Cover with foil and bake at 400 for 15 minutes, or until bells are soft.

Enjoy!

Unexpected gifts

Tonight my neighbor stopped by to drop off a "just because" gift. On Sunday we went to a Police Wives luncheon and I mentioned to her that we were having the worse time finding Police Pj's for baby. My mom gave us Fireman Pj's, and well....you know! Actually, Officer K9 (for lack of any other nickname that he approves of), really likes the Firemen and Aide guys in his city so he was okay with the Fireman Pj's but let's be honest, our boy needs some Police Pj's. So my super awesome neighbor bought baby some! They won't fit him for a while but he will love them!!!! Aren't they so cute?

We also received this today from our tax guy. The funny thing is that baby is due April 15th, he truly could be a tax baby! I was dying when I opened the Chinese take out box and pulled this out!

Yesterday my mom sent us a box of hand knitted blankets, some Nike beanies for when we go running, a cute Dino outfit (Becca would love it) and some much needed bibs! Can never have too many bibs!
I love getting baby stuff! It's all so cute! Turns out I will be having a weekend full of baby showers! It will be fun. My mom is coming in March 18th and I found out today that work wanted to my shower that night. So they are thinking of doing it Friday the 19th instead so my mom can attend. I belong to a Christian Cop's wives prayer group that meets once a month and they are having a mini shower for me that Saturday at our brunch and Officer K9's Sgt's fiance who is a good friend of mine and the awesome evidence Officer from the PD are throwing me a shower that Sunday. It will be busy but I'm excited my mom will be here to share in some of it with me.
So tonight for dinner I tried a new recipe that I have not made before. It also came from my recipe cards that I have.
Normandy Chicken
Here is the recipe and in italics are the modifications I made. Due to pregnancy brain, I was missing a few items or just decided to use what I have in the house to save money!
3 1/2 lb chicken in pieces (I used chicken breasts)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp dried marjoram (I used dried, never used marjoram before so totally not worth buying fresh)
1 tbl margarine
1 onion sliced thinly
2 Granny smith apples sliced thinly, not peeled (or you can peel. I used a different kind of apple that we had from our fresh, organic box we get from Klesick Farm twice a month.)
1/2 cup of sherry or apple juice (I used 3/4 cup apple juice-had to modify because of next item)
1/2 cup of apple cider vinegar (I used 1/4 cup white vinegar-this would be where pregnancy brain came in. I thought I had the cider vinegar, well I did, before we got married and lived elsewhere!)

1. Salt, pepper and marjoram the chicken (I didn't really measure out just sprinkled on them)
2. Melt margarine in pan
3. Brown chicken on both sides, about 6 minutes, do not need to cook thoroughly.
4. Add chicken to deep baking dish.
5. Top with apples and onions.
6. Mix together sherry and vinegar then pour on top of chicken, apples and onion.
7. Bake at 350 for 1 hour, or until chicken is cooked through.
8. Baste chicken every so often during baking so it doesn't dry out.

Finished product (after we ate 2 pieces)

I baked ours in my technique enamel cast iron 5 qt casserole dish, from QVC. I love it! We received it as a wedding gift from my mom, along with some other pieces. This one has a cute asparagus lid. These are the best! They clean up like new, the seasoning you see in this one, is just from tonight and once I wash it will come right out. It doesn't even require scrubbing! It truly is non-stick! Everything cooks so evenly too, it's wonderful! I have this one, a saucepan, a rectangular baking dish and a 7 qt casserole dish with grill lid. I have even used them on the grill to make cobbler last summer. Delicious! No burn marks and enamel stayed in tack. I totally recommend them! I have only used the technique brand, so cannot speak for any others.
Here's the cute asparagus lid, sadly, I don't think they sell these anymore.

Well, must go do the dishes from dinner and hit the hay! Officer K9 is testing for Sergeant tomorrow and is already in bed waiting for me! I couldn't be prouder of him and know he will do so good tomorrow! He def will look handsome in the new suit we bought him, that I picked out, of course! Hunter gets to spend the day at school with mom while dad is spending the day in testing.

Matthew 28:18-20
And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."

The going's on around here!

This will be a mish mosh of a blog today! No real direction, just the urge to write! First, this story out of WA. Sad that we have to have a policy set about this. Should this not be the norm? So proud to say my LE hubby is 100% honest and truthful, each time and every time.
Wash. Senate passes bill requiring honest cops | KOMO News - Breaking News, Sports, Traffic and Weather - Seattle, Washington | Local & Regional

Tonight for dinner we had my Grandma Italian's gravy and pasta! MMMM!!! Everything homemade except the pasta, although I am hoping ot one day get the pasta tool for my kitchen aide and be able to make my own! I can make my own manicotti shells, pretty good too. Anyway, I can't reveal the entire family recipe, but will give you a few Italian tips.
First, the crock pot is your friend and the flavors blend so much better than when making gravy in the pot on the stove. But...if you do not have a crock pot, the stove top works fine! You don't want to use too big of a pot though. I have a large crock pot. I always make my own gravy, jar sauce was banned from this house once we got married and I moved in. Hubby had no complaints with that one!

Tip #1:I buy the large can of crushed tomatoes from Costco. You can always just buy smaller cans from the store, depends if you want lots of extra!

Tonight I was able to make a lb of pasta for the gravy and still have 2 full Tupperware to put in the freezer for a later date with pasta, to make a lasagna, ziti or whatever! I probably could have gotten 3 extra but we like extra gravy!

Tip #2: FRESH HERBS, this may the most important tip I can give. FRESH HERBS. Whatever herbs you use, always use fresh! Again, I buy large amounts and freeze it so I always have them handy. Fresh truly does make a difference in flavor.

Tip #3: Cook your meat first, whatever-meatballs, sausage, pork and then add it to the gravy to slow cook. Adds more flavor and the meat comes out so juicy and tender!

Tip #4: Never use jar again. ;)

The finished product:

Hubby went to work a happy man tonight! Actually, I cooked it overnight. Since I don't sleep well, every time I got up for nature, I stirred the sauce. By time Hubby came home from work this morning the house smelled so good! He said he was ready for dinner!
Oddly enough, this was the exact same meal I served the first weekend he came to see me in Vegas. It was our first night meeting each other. After picking him up at the airport we went back to my house and had this same meal. Later we had dessert at my bestest friends house and then he went to the hotel. 2 days later in Disneyland, he said he loved me. Hmmm....something special in the sauce maybe? Ahh, the memories! What a great weekend that forever changed my life for the better! Thank you so much God!
For dessert tonight, Skinny cow vanilla ice cream sandwich. My favorite treat! I use to devour one of these after each my runs in the Vegas summer heat! Now they just serve to curb my sweet cravings that my sweet baby has these days!

Speaking of my sweet baby, here he is!

32 weeks today. This was a self-portrait so probably not the best. Sorry!
Today we had a visit with our midwife. She is so awesome! She confirmed what I already knew, even though I am delivering at the hospital, the midwifery group has their own way of doing things and do not follow the Dr's schedule on anything! Phew! Nothing against Dr's, they have to follow the hospital policy and most of it is set because of all the crazy malpractice suits. They just can't take any chances anymore, we just felt our baby deserved better and I deserved a better birth! So, what will mine look like? Well, hard to say until it actually happens but here is a bit of what is typical with the midwives where I am delivering at.

First, she will be with me the entire time I am at the hospital laboring unless a busload of pregnant women get dropped off. They encourage you to not stay in bed, to use the birth ball, walk, get in the tub for relief. She actually said if she walks in and I am in bed she will make me get up! Babies don't get down where they need to be on their own! This would be a good place for me to mention that we have decided to go natural. My midwife completely supports this and will encourage me in that moment all women have when they really want the drugs! She will encourage me to keep going, but did say only I know how much I can take and if at anytime I really can't the epi is available, but she thinks I can do it, especially since I am a runner (on a sabbatical right now.) Sadly, she did say, most of the nurses at the hospital may not believe in that and if she is not in the room they may try to discourage getting out of bed and may try to get me to take the epi or potison. Yes, that is the other thing-midwives use natural means to get things going if you get stuck, and their idea of being stuck is alot longer than the dr's timeline. Phew! The midwifery clinic has an 11% c-sec rate, because they don't medically intervene unless the baby or momma truly are in trouble, they can count on one hand the number of episiotomies they have done, it's not routine! They look at each individual situation. The hospital has a 33% c-sec rate. I can honestly say that most of that 33% was medically necessary, or at least would not have been medically necessary if the momma had been allowed to finish what was going okay, just not on the timeline set for the dr's. Once you intervene you increase the chance that a perfectly fine labor can get complicated. My body was designed to deliver this baby, no matter his size! Only him and God know his timeline, not my place to push it along! Now, with that being said, if at any time my midwife tells me there is a concern for me or the baby, well, we can then have a discussion. They also give you the baby right away, skin-to-skin for at least an hour. An hour! They won't even do any of the routine, required procedures until I have that time and then when they do wash, give eye treatment and other stuff, it is in the room I am in. He never has to leave me unless there is something wrong with him. I am so looking forward to this birth, where before, at the OB clinic I was at I was not so excited about it. What a difference being looked at as a person and not a number makes. I know going with a midwife and going natural is not for everyone, it certainly was not a decision we came to easily. We researched a ton and prayed even more! In the end we knew this was right for us. Even with the most perfect laid out plans, anything can happen and we will have no regrets! I would just recommend to anyone giving birth, to educate yourself on labor. That advice was given to me and I am so grateful for it! I have not watched this yet, but it had been recommended to me by several people, The Business of Being Born.

So that is the going on's around here. Oh! i got side tracked and didn't mention my stats! My belly is measuring 34, midwife is happy with that. I am a small gal with a small torso, the baby doesn't have many places to go but out! His HB is in the 130's, nice and strong. My BP was good, low but that is how my BP runs. No overwhelming swelling or pains. Getting Braxton hicks but nothing too bad. After my Bowen therapy today, my back feels awesome! She did one move on me, and it gave baby hiccups. LOL! So cute! God is so good! What a miracle!

New K-9 cop recruit honors fallen officers | Lakewood News

New K-9 cop recruit honors fallen officers | Lakewood News

So, this was going to be just a blog about dinner tonight until I watched the news! I was in tears! Of course, I just have a soft side for K9's, but what an incredible story! This pup will forever be loved and forever be the memory of 4 amazing hero's who gave their lives in November. Thank you to the Tacoma breeder who felt moved to give this department a bit of love in a time they need it! I am hoping Komo 4 news will post a video soon, the video on the news was so cute and so touching! The news reported that 2.1 million dollars has been raised for the 4 fallen officer's children. They are not taking donations for them anymore, but putting any new donations to other families that have lost a loved one. They are hoping when ROGeR gets old enough they can train him to be a tracking dog and he will join their K9 unit with Fellon (LOL), their narcotics dog. If he is not tracking material the Officer that has him now will get to keep him as the department pup. So awesome!!!!!

So, dinner tonight was probably the best, easiest ever! It was the perfect meal for a couple who only has 45 minutes together before Officer Hubby leaves. This morning I put a small pork roast in the crock pot. I added a packet of taco seasoning and 2 cups of water. Hubby turned it once during the day. It cooked on low for 10 hours and by time we ate it, it just fell apart and was shredded pork. I came home from work and whipped up some homemade guacamole, cooked some black beans and heated up the flour tortillas I bought at Costco. They come uncooked and you just heat them in the pan, soooo good! Will never go back to packaged tortillas! They came with a ton in the package, as Costco does, and I was able to divide the 2 packages into 4, I froze 3. They are good for 20 days once opened and kept in the fridge. With all that, we rolled up a burito and enjoyed! Of course we topped it with cheese, salsa and sourcream. But hey, add whatever you like in your buritos! Hubby loved it and I thought it was yummy! I had enough leftover for lunch tomorrow then I froze the rest and we will have taco meat ready to go anytime. EASY!

Heart shaped pancakes

Happy Valentines day!

What an honor I have to call my sweetie, husband. Yesterday, I made us heart shaped, strawberry pancakes, bacon and eggs. (Well, he made the eggs.) I made them yesterday because this morning was church and I just knew if I tried to make them today I would be running too late!



Scrambled eggs with cheese for me (Oh, so sick of scrambled eggs!) and over easy for him (so jealous!) (LOL, as I was previewing this, I noticed my big belly in the picture!)

Last year for Valentines day weekend I came up here. I had a 4 day weekend from school, just like this year, thank you Mr. President from a long, long time ago. Hubby had to work on the night I flew in so I was able to do a little grocery shopping to get all the necessary items to surprise with a heart shaped pancake breakfast. Since he worked, on Saturday (Valentine's last year) I woke early and am pretty sure I was working on a paper for my Master's program, that's like all I did last spring. That and plan a move and a wedding, nothing too big. Anyway, after I let him sleep for what seemed like enough time, I surprised him with the yummy breakfast! He was totally surprised and absolutely loved it. He said to me "This is the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me." "Seriously," I thought. "They are just pancakes, shaped like a heart." I about cried and deep in my heart, in that moment, knew that I loved this man so much & he loved me so much that he deserved a heart shaped pancake everyday of our lives together! From this point on, I will refer to the heart shaped pancake, but it really is just a symbol. I can't literally make him a pancake shaped like a heart everyday!

Heart shaped pancake is the little things I do each day to show him how much I love and appreciate everything he does for me and our home. It's the making sure he has a hot meal before he goes to work, the "be safe" as he walks out the door, the middle of the shift "I love you" texts, the cleaning the dishes, cleaning the house, being quiet as I get ready in the mornings because he worked the night before, making sure his favorite creamer is in the fridge for his coffee, making our house a home, loving him as much as Christ loves me and showering him with that love. It's unconditional and selfless. It comes in the shape of a heart, but often does not look like a heart. Love is loving without expecting anything in return. Its the hug, the kiss, the touch, the just being next to each other. It's the quiet moments you share when there really is nothing to say. What are the heart shaped pancakes you give to your husband each day?

Last Valentine's Day, I began this tradition of making him heart shaped pancakes because it sounded like a cutesy, romantic thing to do. Little did I know how much it would mean to him. Now, I continue it because it did mean so much to him and because I enjoy doing it for him. I was so excited for this weekend to come so I could make them for him! We even had leftovers for tomorrow! Tonight, he is taking me to some fancy movie theater with recliners, a yummy dinner and a romantic movie. I don't care what we do, as long as we are together, but it means that much more that in this, our last year as DINKS, he would splurge and treat me to a wonderful date night. His list of how he gives me heart shaped pancakes each day is way longer than mine, he loves me so much and I feel so undeserved of it most of the time. I bet we could all say that, huh?

On this note, I have a video to share. This is one of his favorite songs and I heard it this morning on our way home from church, how appropriate on Valentine's day, as a great reminder of our first love.

How Many Kings by Downhere

A very Martha day

I call this recipe: Brownies from whatever was in my pantry!
Today I was inspired after reading Sarah's post about making brownies last night, to make some for my hubby to take to work. I decided to get creative with it and use some fancy tools I had from my Pampered Chef Shower that I had not used yet, thank you neighbors!
I got the brownie recipe from my friend, Officer Hottie's wife (sorry, I can't resist typing that. Not that I think her husband is hot, I don't look beyond my own, but that is her blogger name and it's just so cute!)She got the recipe from recipezaar. These are so easy to make and so delicious! I won't go back to box brownies again! The best part is that this is stuff anyone already has in their cupboards, minus the cocoa powder. I have had a tin for 6 months now and have made brownies at least 5-6 times out of it. Still have plenty left! I made them one time with nuts but Officer Hottie's wife told me her trick to mix chips in instead of nuts. Any kind you want! Experiment! So far my favorite were the limited edition mint chocolate from nestle. I hear peanut butter chips are good too!
Today I mixed in a bit of Heath bar crushed and some white chocolate chips (leftovers in my pantry). I used my mini baking pan from PC (not actually sure that is the official name). 1 batch was just enough, with a little extra if I wanted to make a mini brownie bar.


I baked these at 350 for about 20 minutes, but did check after 15. Mine kinda ran onver (lesson learned) so they did take a bit longer. I have found homemade brownies take longer anyway. You could totally make these using a box, but why? This is so easy and so delicious! My hubby thinks I make the best brownies in the world! Which says a lot considering when we first met I couldn't bake at all!
So, after they came out I immediately used my PC masher (again, probably not the official name, but Oh well!) and put a slight indent in them. My neighbor gave me the tip not to mash all the way down or they become stuck to the sides. Oh-I did spray the pan with Pam first, this helped get them out! Anyway, I let them then cool in the pan about 10 minutes then they popped right out, except the ones which had overflowed. Those needed my help. I set them on the cooling rack and got to work on the filling.



Now, here is where it got a bit sticky. I decided to use a box of chocolate pudding I had in the pantry. No idea why I ever bought this! The really funny part is it was heat and serve recipe. Seriousely? Who buys that? Why? When you can buy a box, mix it with milk and it's ready? Well, apparently I bought it! So, I set out to make it. Grr! Pain! Then I put it in fridge to cool. It did thicken but I got too impatient to let it cool totally. I then mixed half the pudding with some whip cream I had in the fridge. Then I filled my cool decorator tool from PC and set out to fill the brownie cups. Now this is where letting the pudding cool completely would have made for a fancier looking filling. Oh well! After filling each cup I topped each one with a cherry cordial kiss I also had in the pantry. They look yummy and after a taste test, they are Cop approved! Enjoy tonight fellas! Happy Valentine's day from us!


Finished and packed up ready to go to the PD. I did put them in the fridge once I packaged them so they would cool and the pudding could set some more.

Now, must get started on dinner! I am making tortellini in an Alfredo sauce (see 3 posts back for recipe) with spinach and artichokes in the sauce. I love that we get to eat dinner together before he has to leave for work!

Proverbs 12:11
Whoever works his land will have plenty of bread, but he who follows worthless pursuits lacks sense. So wise!

Gossip

Gossip, many of us do it. Many of us do it and don't realize it's gossip. Do we even realize the effects it has on the one we are gossiping about? I admit, I do it. It's a whole different story though when you are the one being gossiped about it. This week I found out that I have been at the tail end of gossip at work. It wasn't necessarily to bring me down, but someone else, but nevertheless, it was about me. About me, the baby and our plans for the fall! After hearing the gossip I ran through all these plans to address it. We were having a staff meeting the next day, the preschool for the district I work for has it's own building and our staff is about 6 teachers, an admin, 2 family support managers, an SLP, psych and an OT plus 10 or so EA's. In any case I ran the conversation through my mind, here is how I thought it would go:
Me: "I heard someone has been spreading a lie about whether or not I will be returning next year. If anyone has any questions, please feel free to come ask me. It was good to hear though what my plans are and how I have been hiding them. I let Scott know what we had decided."
Of course, I did not say any of that. I actually didn't address it all. I just went about the day trying to figure out who had started it. By the end of the day, I realized it didn't matter. Gossip is just a lie and did not deserve any attention from me! If the gossiper feels okay knowing they are spreading a lie, as I have never discussed my future plans with anyone at work, especially since I don't know them yet,well, it just is not my place to say anything. They need to deal with those decisions. It did help me to remember though, the damage gossip can cause and that I should not be participating in such sin.

Tomorrow we have an appointment after school to "meet and greet" a pediatrician. I am fairly confident this will be Samuel's pediatrician. My friend, Officer Hottie's wife (he he) recommended him. He already recommends an alternate vaccine schedule, so no fight there! That is huge! Many ped's either won't even discuss it or participate in it or they fight you on it but will eventually follow your schedule. I have been researching this idea of an alternate schedule for a while, thanks to Kiera educating me. Dr. Sear's has a great book on the matter "The Vaccine book." I got mine on Amazon, used for $7! The title says "Making the right decision for your child." That is it, we are making what we believe to be the right decision for our child. In order to best do that, we need to educate ourselves. It's been no different than when we were thinking about our birth. What would be right for us and our child? If you ever want to ask me more about our decisions to use an alternate schedule, please do! I'd love to talk to you about it! For now though, I don't think I need to post my ideals on here. They are just my thoughts and decisions based on the research I have read, I am obviously not an expert!I encourage anyone thinking of not vaccinating or using an alternate schedule to research it, everything you can find! Make a truly informed decision not one based on gossip, funny I tied that in! For us, Dr. Sears website had good info and his book was invaluable! It discusses each vaccine, what they are made of, what they protect against, pro'/con's etc.... He even gives a suggested alternate schedule. Some of his ideas on his website did not work for us, but this was one that did! I have found as I am reading through sleeping, feeding, health care thoughts/ideas for babies, there is not one ideal that fits for us, but I am able to take pieces from different doctors, researchers etc that may. Of course, Samuel may come and put a wrench in all my planning! The joys of a baby!

Well, tomorrow is our Valentines/Friendship celebration and I have jello jigglers to make so the kiddies can cut them out and fruit to prepare so the kiddies can cut it up and make friendship salad. It will be a busy day but fun! They made the cutest love bugs for their moms today! I realized this week that I won't be there for Mother's day and we always do. Its super cute! I will have to start prepping my EA for it now! LOL! She rocks so it will totally come out great! I do love making cute crafts for the kids to take home and the families can keep forever! My mom still has mine and my brother's from Elementary school! Embarrassing but good memories.

Everyone enjoy the night and the hopefully long weekend. I have a 4 day one and Scott is off 3 of the 4! I cannot wait to sleep in with my husband, lay around doing nothing but whatever husbands and wives do, and just relaxing! oh- and the big plans he has for us for Valentine's day. Our first as Husband and Wife! Smooch!

This is awesome!

This obviousely is not Hunter, but too cute to not put on here. I could totally see Hunter dressed in Scott's uniform!
Monroe prisoners donate to Lakewood fallen officers fund | KOMO News - Breaking News, Sports, Traffic and Weather - Seattle, Washington | Local & Regional
I heard about this this morning on Spirit Radio I couldn't believe it! It is an amazing story of the good in people, even those on death row! Well, I am not sure they are on death row, but the radio said most of the inmates at the prison in Monroe are lifers. It's amazing that even these guys, who clearly landed where there are because a Police Officer arrested them, can say that what happened in Lakewood was unacceptable and that their families deserve to be taken care of. If they can do it, can't we all? It has been well over two months since that awful day. Have we forgotten already? The news certainly has. They went from caring for our Officers to portraying them negatively, as usual. I forgot how much the media always goes against our Law Enforcement until I watched the news last night. All I thought was "Oh, how soon we forget." Truly innocent or not, if the SWAT team comes bashing through your door, get down and shut up! It is their job to take you in, you will have time later to explain yourself and/or try to defend yourself-if you truly are innocent. If my husband is on that SWAT team or the team coming in the house of a potential really bad guy, I hope he takes you down (to arrest you not shoot you, unless of course you pull out a gun, knife or any other kind of potentially deadly weapon) and asks questions later. Because if he or any other team members pause for one second, him or others could be shot. We have seen that here several times over the past 4 months. Listen, I by no means have any Law Enforcement training, but I do know, as a cops wife, that they have extensive trainings on these things and certainly the majority of them act our of Officer Safety. They each have a family to go home to at night! It is sad though that there are a few bad seeds out there who make them all look bad. But isn't that true in any profession? I know plenty of teachers who have been in the media and have truly done our profession a disservice because of their own egotistical ideas. Doe that mean we are all bad? Is it possible that many of the men and women protecting us each day are Christians? Who love the Lord and truly are there because they want to serve and protect? YES!!!! I know many who fall in this group! I even know many who are not Christians but have the same ideas to protect and serve with honesty, integrity and safety.
I suppose I did become more passionate about defending our Law Enforcement once I became a wife. It changes your view on many issues and makes you that more defensive, protective and full of love for our men in blue! You can never truly know the concern each night your husband puts on that uniform and leaves the house for a shift. You will never know the pride and love as you watch him drive away. You will never know unless you are a cop's wife. So many mixed feelings. What gets me through each night? Prayer and the comfort that the LORD has him in His hands and is protecting him and Hunter each night. Although, when he doesn't answer my call or text right away, I do immediately think "what if this is it?" I have played the whole scenario in my mind so many times, the phone call, the knock at the door. Sick, I know. How can I even imagine what that moment would be like? Maybe I am not suppose to. That may not be my life, so why think those thoughts? Well, after having 3 separate officer ambushes here in the past 4 months, and attending the 4 Lakewood Officer memorial, how could I not have those thoughts?
Husband loves what he does, Hunter loves what he does! I know that Officer Safety is at the top of my husbands list and his #1 priority is to come home to me and soon to Samuel each night. I also know that when there is trouble, he is surrounded by many good men there to help and protect him. It is a world of "we have your back and we want to go home to our families just as much." It is a world of comfort and pure joy that he is mine to love and to pray for. I love that he dresses here, I get to see him in his uniform each night he works and he looks so darn handsome in it! I suppose I have always held a special place in my heart for men in uniform, they are just THAT good looking! I never thought it'd be an Officer I would marry but I sure am glad that is who God brought me!
I have become part of a Cop's wives prayer group. We meet once a month for brunch, fellowship and prayer for our husbands and each other. I love the ladies in my group and am so blessed to have that support group. As we have met several months now, we are learning that there is such a need out there for a wives support group. To have those women who can relate to you and your fears, concerns, worry and pride. It's nice and I look forward to our monthly get togethers. I missed January's because I was in Vegas and I am really missing my ladies and the strength in prayer among several!