Our little lady

In case you didn't think I was nuts before, I have no doubts that after reading this post you'll surely think I'm off my rocker! We are now a family of six! That's right! Price, myself, Preston, Ethan, Maverick and introducing our little lady Lucy! Almost two weeks ago we adopted Lucy, an approximately 1-2 year old boxer mix, from Helen Woodward animal shelter. She was/is very under weight, had patches of hair missing, had worms and is timid around men (which all sounds so horrible and seem like reasons not to adopt her, especially given her age and the hyper reputation boxers tend to have) but she has been WONDERFUL! Lucy and Preston are glued to each others sides 24/7. They sleep together and everything! She is wonderful In the car and on the leash ( even alongside the stroller) and is learning sit and stay. After being with us for about a week, she started to get a little spunky and is now playing fetch and trying to run on my morning walked with her. She is very protective and growls at people who come up the the house when the boys or I are near her. She LOVES other dogs, women, kids and older men. So far she has had a hard time bonding with price. She growls at him every now and then but will cuddle with him on the couch, take naps with him and allows him to pet her, feed her and pick her up. Even though she growls and keeps her distance some times, She has never charged him or snipped at him. We're assuming she was abused by a younger man. Hopefully it just takes time for him to build her trust. We love our little girl and are so happy to have yet ANOTHER new addition!

Lots of love and bunches of hugs!
XOX9 Brogan Lee

A southern meal

Since I've been on maternity leave I've been trying to make dinner every night. Most of the time its kind of the same thing; grilled chicken, a veggie and a starch. Last night our dinner fit the same format but was far from healthy and had a little southern flare. We had fried chicken, Mac and cheese with bacon bits and buttered,garlic, cheesy green beans. This was the 1st time I've fried chicken. It was much easier than what the directions led me to believe. Here is a very brief description of how I did it. P.s. this is in my own words and from memory so bare with me.
1st; put several chicken breasts in a ziplock bag and pound to the thickness of choice and then cut into smaller pieces
2nd; put chicken strips in a bowl of buttermilk and let sit while you prepare the flour mixture
3rd; in a separate ziplock mix flour, paprika, salt, pepper and bread crumbs. I just dumped everything in and didn't measure anything.
4th; put a few pieces of chicken in the bag at a time and shake until well coated. Lay chicken on a cookie sheet and cover with wax paper until the coating on the chicken begins to look like a paste. I waited about 20 mins
5th; pour veggie oil in a large pot (I used a cast iron pot that worked really well) let the oil get REALLY hot before putting the chicken it. I set the oil on almost high heat for 20+ minutes. I discovered Veggie oil doesn't splatter.
6th; once oil is hot and the coating in the chicken is at the right consistency, drop as many pieces of chicken into the pan as will fit. The recipe advised to cook on hight heat until brown and then turn down to a Low heat and cover for 30 mins. I think because of how hot my oil was and how thin my chicken was, it cooked SUPER fast. After about 8 minutes, in pulled the strips out and drained on a few paper towels.
Finally, pile everything on your plate and enjoy!!
..... And I wonder why I'm not losing weight! ;)

Lots of Love and Bunches if Hugs,
XOXO Brogan Lee

Venting

Prepare yourselves, this entire post will be dedicated to my current frustrations. 1st: I recently had my six week postpartum check up and was really discouraged but the lack of progress i've made in getting back to my normal shape. It doesnt seem to matter how many reassuring things I read in the handouts the midwifes provide, or incouraging things people say. I still feel crappy and i guess that wont go away until i get myself into gear and push myself to look the way i want. What's even more upsetting is that I seem to be the only women ever who can breast freed, work out 3-6 days a week for over an hour and a half, eat 1200-1500 HEALTHY calories a day and STILL not lose weight! In fact over the christmas week I even gained weight! UGH! 2nd: I am finally starting to understand how stressful it can be to have 3 children. Maverick is sleeping less and less during the days which means i have less and less time to work on chores and projects. I feel like i never get everything done. The cleaning, laundry, dishes never stop piling up and as soon as i seem to have it all under control, something comes up. It's not that big of a deal but for the OCD Brogan it can sometimes be overwhelming. 3rd: This isn't really that big of a deal, but Preston started school this week. I'm excited for him and happy that he is finally getting to interact with kids his own age and is getting some mental stimulation during the day. The problem is that his preschool is from 830-1230 and is a half hour drive away. So we leave the house at 8, get home at 9, have to leave again at 12 to get him and then dont get back home again until 1pm. Im also $410 poorer each month not to mention the gas money and money we spent on new clothes and shoes and the "donations" the school is asking for for school supplies...all while only reciving 65% pay due to maternity leave.

well, i'll leave with that. I'm sure there are plenty of other things to vent about but i dont want to be a downer and my exaustion has caused my mind to go blank! :)

Lots of Love and Bunches of Hugs!!
XOXO Brogan Lee

Christmas preview

Mr Lance Kinney supplied me with hundreds of amazing photos from the Christmas weekend. I have WAY too many favorites to post, so I'm still trying to narrow it down. When that finally happens you'll get a peak into the fantastic weekend we experienced. Until then, here are a few shots from my cell phone! I hope everyone has had a marvelous holiday and end to 2011!!

Lots of Love and Bunches of Hugs!!
XOXO Brogan Lee

P.s. yes, that's the beach. It was 70 degrease on Christmas so we spent some time on Avila Beach!!

Green smoothies

While in S.L.O. During the Christmas week Price and I were spoiled with endless delicious meals. Amongst the deliciousness was what I like to call"The Green Smoothie". Both of Prices sisters eat extremely healthy and in an effort to live a better 2012, I'm going to use them as motivators. Melanie is the worlds beat salad maker. I've made several attempts to recreate her master pieces, but to no avail. Soon, I will create a salad that I never want to stop eating!! Until that day comes, I can continue to enjoy the smoothie Maegan introduced to us. I have no idea the measurements of the ingredients but I just threw everything in and blended it up and it was great!! Here's what's in it:
A banana
Strawberries
Blueberries
Collars greens
Raw almonds
Strawberry Kefir
Liquid flaxseed oil
Ice
Water
Blend and enjoy an extremely filling, delicious and nutritious meal!! Oh and the next part... The kids love it too!!!

Lots of Love and Bunches of Hugs
XOXO Brogan Lee

A kite kind of day

It was warm and beautiful outside yesterday and with no plans for New Years Eve, we decided to take the boys to the Coronado Cays Dog Park and fly the kites they got for Christmas. Because of how nice it was at our place, I left the house in shorts and a tank top only to have the sky go from blue to grey, and the temperature drop by 10 degrees in the short 14 miles between our home and the park. Despite the weather, the boys seemed to have a good time flying their kites and playing on the playground. Preston got his kite almost all the way let out on the string without it falling. Ethan grew tried of flying long before his brother and he spent a good amount of time on the swings (while I one handed pushed him and gulped my hot coffee with the other). When I couldn't take the cold any longer we headed back home. Price put the new BBQ to work and we ended the night with some delicious chicken breast, which I'm excited to say the boys actually ate! The hubs and I have decided that the unhealthy eating habits of the boys need to stop so they MUST eat the same thing that we eat, Or they go to bed hungry. Last night it was no issue,in fact they actually seemed to like it!! Fingers crossed this becomes a regular thing or our nights are going to be pretty rough!

Lots if Love and Bunches of Hugs,
XOXO Brogan Lee

1st hair cut

Maverick was the 1st Walling baby to be born with a massive amount of hair. I loved it, but it was starting to thin around the sides and the top was always stringy and greasy looking. So, I gave Mav his first hair cut! It is a drastic difference! He looks like a whole different baby.... Or maybe Elmer Fudd! ;) I've heard people say that shaving a babies head multiple times while their little makes it grow in thicker, so we'll see if that's true for our little man! I at least hope it grows fast!!

Lots of Love and Bunches of Hugs,
XOXO Brogan Lee