Five on Friday!

  Another round of five on Friday! Here we go!   - ONE - I just learned this week that you can cook a baked potato in the crockpot! At first I was skeptical but figured it really didn't require any work so I attempted it. Literally, all you have to do is wash your potatoes, poke some holes in them and place them in the slow cooker on low for 10 hours. That's it!!! When I got home I was shocked at how perfectly my potatoes were cooked through. In fact, they were the best I've ever made! Anyways, as I was scooping out the perfectly baked insides it dawned on me that I should just go the extra mile and make them twice baked potatoes! I'm so glad I did. I followed the Pioneer Woman's Recipe {here} and days later Matt and I are still talking about how this was one of our most favorite dinners recently!

- TWO - Last night my friend Cristina hosted our first Supper Club of the year. She did such a wonderful job kicking things off with Zoe's Kitchen, GiGi's Cupcakes and lots of wine! Everyone had such a great time!

- THREE - I recently discovered Jim Gaffigan and am obsessed. Several nights this week I have binge watched his stand up skits and haven't laughed that hard in awhile. Below is one of my favorite skits on McDonalds. If you're looking for a good laugh you also have to watch: Camping, Waking Up & Bacon, 4 Kids, Hot Pockets, Bottled Water, Kale and pretty much any other skit you can find!

- FOUR - Question for the mamas! Caroline's chubby little legs are starting to get stuck in her Bumbo Seat these days and I fear we will soon need to consider high chair options. We currently have a Chicco Caddy Hook On Chair as an option but the only area in our kitchen that we could hook it on would be our bar top (which is really tall, and I am really short). Otherwise, we'd need to use the table in the dining room. And let's be honest, I'm not going to feed Caroline in the dining room every meal. I like to give her some food while I prep dinner 3 steps away. So my question is...what high chair would you recommend?

- FIVE - Last but certainly not least, I wanted to provide you all with an update on my dad. First, I just have to tell you how humbled by the amount of prayers and emails we still continue to receive. Please don't stop praying...IT IS WORKING! Dad recently had a follow up scan to check on the progress from the lung radiation and the doctor was surprised and elated to deliver great news - not only did the radiation stop the cancer from spreading in his lungs but it also has significantly shrunk! On top of that, dad's lungs are no longer collapsed and he is breathing great. Just over the weekend he worked out and did some yard work! His chemo got delayed around Christmas because he came down with a pretty nasty flu but he had a quick surgery yesterday to receive his port and will begin very soon. We are hopeful that his progress will continue to amaze us all. God is so good. And you all are so wonderful to keep up the support and prayers for my family. From the bottom of my heart, THANK YOU!

Wanna join Darci, April, Natasha and I on the Friday fun? You can link-up on any of our four blogs every Friday! All you have to do is...

1.) Write your post about five things you're lovin' this week (or any five things you want to share!).

2.) Share the logo on your blog and link back. 

3.) Link-up at the bottom of the post so some new readers can check out your five things and say hello!

Baby Boy Bow Tie Shower

On Saturday a group of girls threw our friend McKinsey a bow tie themed baby shower. It was super cute and fun. We cannot wait to meet her little man, Ford, in March! Here are a few of the shower details...

We added tons of framed pictures of McKinsey as a baby around the house. She loved it.

{the invite}

{the flowers}

We had lots of yummy food too.

The country ham biscuits and the parfait bar were personally my favorite.

Guests were asked to self address their thank you card envelope so we could save our soon-to-be mama some time writing her thank you notes. The sign says "Please help our mommy to be by making yourself the addressee!"

 The party favors were bags of M&Ms tied up to look like bow ties.

Baby Ford was so showered with love and gifts -- a success!

Caroline Grace {8 Months Old}

Caroline Grace,

Where did my baby go?! We were so unprepared for how mobile you'd become this month. You are all over the place at home and school. Yesterday I watched you crawl to the other side of the room and into your car seat. When you aren't crawling you're pulling yourself up on things -- the coffee table, your crib, my legs, the cabinets, the couch, your dresser, Charlie and anything that looks stable (or not). Once you are in standing position you always give the proudest grin. You know you're awesome. I didn't think it was possible but we continue to fall more and more in love with you. One of my most treasured moments lately have been how happy and giggly you get when you see us walk into your classroom at pick up. You come crawling so fast to us and your teachers get such a kick out of it. Our phones are overflowing with videos of you crawling into your closet to find your bows, pulling out baskets, attempting to crawl into your diaper boxes and more. We love you so much baby girl!!!

Love,

Mommy

  8 Month Highlights:

• Crawling, crawling, crawling!! 
• Pulling up on everything.
• Due to a second ear infection we know you are 15 lb, 11 oz. You're in 6 month clothes for the most part and occasionally wear 9 months. Still in size 2 diapers.
• Saying "dadda" all.the.time. now, and still practicing waving hi and bye,
• Eating 4 six ounce bottles of Earth's Best Organic Formula a day plus oatmeal with fruit in the morning and a pouch of organic fruits or veggies for lunch and dinner. Also taking the sippy cup like a champ. We love the Nuby, Tommee Tippee and Munchkin Flexi-Transition sippy cups.
• No sign of teeth.   
• Your hair is finally starting to come in a bit -- verdict is still out on color. For now, your eyes are hazel.
• You always have (unless we're in a regression or have taken you out of your routine) been a great sleeper. You go down around 6:30-7 pm and wake at 6 am for a bottle and then cuddle in bed with us until we get up for the day. You still take all your naps in our arms too. Swoon!
• The past few months you've really grown an attachment to MAM pacis for sleeping (and sometimes playing too) and every time we lose a few I immediately rush ship a handful more to the house. You also love to throw your pacis out of your crib over and over and over.
• This month we celebrated your first Christmas and rang in the new year together.