Nolan's 1st Birthday

Nolan Yates turned 1 on May 3rd, but his birthday party was held on May 11th.  The Yates moved to High Point at the end of April, so Jamie needed some time to get settled and get the house in order before his party.  She definitely succeeded!  The house was gorgeous and everything was already in it's place!  I can't lie.  I was almost more excited to see the house than I was for the party! (I'm so bad.)  And I was so excited to bring Jamie and Billy a housewarming gift!

After we toured the house, it was time to eat!

Nolan had a great time!  In just a few weeks, he's started walking and he was practically running the day of his party!  He LOVED the balloons and played with them the entire afternoon!

Look at that birthday outfit!  Too cute!

He wasn't such a fan of his cake.  In fact, it started a meltdown.

But we took a break for presents and let him have his balloons again and he was golden!

This is one of my favorite pictures from the day...

Both boys, playing with their toys.

Happy Birthday Nolan!  We love you!

Forgotten Chicken

I know I've already posted a chicken and rice recipe here, but my man loves some chicken and he loves some rice.  So, I have a new recipe to share with you.  And you guessed it...it contains chicken and it contains rice!

This recipe is so easy, it's stupid.  It contains 5 ingredients plus water and you can put it in the oven and literally forget about it...i.e. Forgotten Chicken... and it's oh so tasty!

Ingredients
Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts
2 Cups of Minute Rice-uncooked
Can of Cream of Chicken Soup
Can of Cream of Celery Soup
1 Package of Lipton Onion Soup Mix
1 Can of Water

Now comes the hard part...
1. Mix together the two soups, the can of water and the two cups of uncooked minute rice.

2. Pour into a buttered casserole dish (I have also used Pam and it works just fine.)

3. Place the chicken breasts on top of the mixture.  Sometimes I need 3 breasts, sometimes 4.  Just judge based on the size of your dish.

4. Sprinkle Onion Mix on top of everything.

5. VERY IMPORTANT...Cover with tin foil...and pop in the oven!

Then forget about it!  You can bake it at 250-275 degrees for 3 hours or 350-375 degrees for one to one and a half hours.  You really can't go wrong.  The rice should be a little crispy around the outside when it's done.

ENJOY!

This recipe lasts us about 3 meals and every time Kevin ate it he said, "This just tastes so good.  I could eat this every day."  I think that speaks for itself!

Why we write...

There are many reasons why I have a blog.
- To document life.
- To help with my memory...being able to look back at things that have happened.
- To post pictures and be able to explain more than just a caption.
- To vent. (just being honest)

And probably many other reasons!
I was reading the blog of one of my former bosses recently.  She's been diagnosed with cancer and has a CaringBridge page that she and her husband update to inform everyone about her trials throughout treatment.  Her husband posted a quote that helps explain why blogging helps him.

"I write because it is when I'm writing that I feel most connected to why we're here.  I write because silence is a heavy weight to carry.  I write to remember.  I write to heal.  I write to let the air in.  I write as a practice of listening."
--Andrea Gibson

It really hit home with me for many different reasons.  Recently I've introduced Prayer and Praise Cards** to my new Bible Study group that Kevin and I are attending.  When passing them out, I explained how amazing it is to get your cards back after a year and to see the prayers that have been answered in that time...and those that haven't.  Prayers are hard because they are your most secret desires, they can be heavy weights and we don't always feel safe sharing them.  However, by writing them down and trading with one person each week, we have someone to pray for us and because we're writing them down and getting them back, it will help us remember where we've come from and where we're going.  Sometimes just writing it down can be such a weight lifting off of our shoulders.  So, I feel that blogging and writing, prayers or recipes or about life, is so important!  And so freeing!  And so I write...

**Prayer and Praise Cards are index cards that are housed in a little index card binder.  Each week you write down one prayer and one praise for that week.  Something you may be struggling with and something great that happened, an answer to prayer or just a good thing, and you switch with someone else so everyone is praying for someone during the week.  Cuts down on the time it takes for everyone to share a prayer request each week and is a great way to document and put your prayers into writing.  In the past, we've had a retreat once a year where we get all of our cards back and it's awesome to see the prayers that have been answered in a years time, or those that take years and years before they're answered.  But, it's a time to praise God because he is faithful and he does hear our prayers!