thankful.

I cannot write this post without crying. Maybe it's the crazy post-pregnancy hormones. They are tears of overwhelming joy, love, and thankfulness. This Thanksgiving will always be a special one because on November 15 at 8:59pm, our son, Jack Donald Miller, was born, healthy and alert and rocking a stellar pair of cheeks. Delivering him was the hardest and most rewarding thing I have ever done in my life. What a miracle! Yes, it's been a major adjustment getting used to life with a newborn. And yes, it's scary to me sometimes to think that this little life depends on my for everything. But every time he stretches after he eats or sneezes three times in a row or studies the world so intently when he's awake, it makes it all worth it. I did not know my heart could feel such overwhelming and nurturing love.

I'm also thankful for my husband - the best labor coach a girl could ask for. Your calmness and attentiveness amazed me as we moved through each stage of labor and delivery. Thank you for holding my puke bucket when the pain was overwhelming. Thank you for rubbing my back over and over and over again. Thank you for letting me squeeze your hand so tight in the middle of contractions. Thank you for always having my water bottle handy. Thank you for being my advocate when I couldn't talk to the doctors and nurses. Thank you for telling me, "You can do this. Keep going, you're doing great" during the last couple of hours when I didn't think I could keep going. And thank you for getting up in the middle of the night between feedings when Jack is fussy so I can get just a few more minutes of sleep. I am so proud of you, I love you so much, and Jack is so blessed to have you as his father. I can't wait to spend Thanksgiving with you and our son.

public service announcement for Netflix owners

Yep, still pregnant. But that's not really what this post is about... 

So maybe this is old news, and probably is since I'm usually waaaayyy behind pop culture (example: I'm just now seeing a movie that came out a year ago), but newsflash: Skyfall is on Netflix! Maybe this is only exciting to Tim and I because a). I've never seen a single Bond movie and b). we've seriously been talking about renting this movie for the past week. It took us about 2 seconds to add it to our list and about 5 minutes to warm up some leftovers, settle onto the couch, and hit play. And it did not disappoint. I loved it for all the classy, suit-wearing action scenes, and Tim loved it for all the throw backs to old Bond movies.

Anything else great on Netflix that we should know about?

lately...

feeling very pregnant but very good
cooking spaghetti pie, pot pie, and corn potato chowder to put in the freezer
researching homemade tub cleaner
going on daily walks
waking up everyday wondering if this will be the day we meet our baby
shopping for Christmas gifts
solidifying names for the bambino
making lists of fun things to do before the baby comes
watching the leaves fall
loving Amazon Prime
listening to "Open Water" by The Saint Johns
taking daily afternoon naps
blazing through "What Not to Wear" episodes on Netflix
walking down the baby aisles every time I go to Target
consciously eating a good amount of protein every day
praying about labor and delivery
filling out Baby Miller's baby book
wondering what it will be like to all of a sudden be a parent
enjoying back rubs from Tim each night during episodes of 30 Rock/Parks & Rec/The Office
laying out baby clothes for the hospital
spending most days in leggings/yoga pants
designing our Christmas card
stocking up on things like sports drinks, protein bars, crackers, and honey sticks
pulling out my sweaters and scarves and warm socks
baking zucchini cinnamon bread and butternut squash
checking out cooking magazines from the library
savoring the last few precious days of this pregnancy as much as possible

recipe // sloppy joes

via

I am a total lover of Pinterest. I don't spend hours a day sifting through pins, but I do use it almost everyday. It has honestly made cooking so much easier. Pre-Pinterest, I used to have bookmark tabs with links and links of recipes I'd like to try. It wasn't very practical, but it was all I had. Then along came Pinterest and this type-A organizer was thrilled.

I found this sloppy joe recipe just a few days ago (on Pinterest) and made it last night. Tim claimed it was hands-down the best sloppy joe he'd ever had. Go figure. It's a super easy recipe; there's just a few little surprise ingredients that I think give it that edge - like soy sauce. Have you ever put soy sauce in your sloppy joes?! Not me. So Tim thought it'd be a good idea to share this recipe with the world, just in case you were looking for the best sloppy joe recipe ever.

Sweet & Spicy Sloppy Joes
from Jennifer Hill Pallian of the Foodess blog

2 tbsp olive oil, divided
1 onion, finely chopped
2 stalks celery, finely chopped
1 carrot, grated
2" piece ginger, minced (I didn't have ginger on hand, but I'm sure this would give it another great dimension of flavor!)
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 lbs lean ground beef
1 1/2 cups ketchup
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup tomato paste
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
1-2 tsp cayenne
1 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp ground cloves
rolls for serving

Heat olive oil in a dutch oven or large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Sauté onion, celery, and carrot until soft, about 5 minutes. Add ginger and garlic and cook until fragrant, about one minute. Add the beef and cook until fully browned, about 10 minutes.
Stir in the ketchup, brown sugar, tomato paste, vinegar, soy sauce, and spices. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes.
Serve with split rolls and enjoy the best sloppy joe ever!

baby update // 37 weeks

yes, that is my hospital bag in the background, semi-packed and ready to go.

Well, folks, I think we're ready for Baby Miller. And by that I mean as ready as you can ever be walking directly into the complete unknown aka parenthood. The nursery is unbelievably cute and stocked with blankets, onesies, and diapers; the car seat base has been installed; all the crib bedding has been washed; the swing is put together and sitting in the corner, waiting to be used. As for the labor and delivery aspect of everything, I'm feeling fairly prepared for that as well. Between our birth classes, reading a couple of highly-recommended books, and talking to friends who have been through the experience, I feel ready to take on this enormous task. People keep asking me if I'm nervous or scared, and I always say no. I'm more curious than anything, and if there's anything I'm nervous about, it's not the pain or work, but just the unknown. I'm a planner by nature and love to know what I'm walking into, but birth is one of those things that you can't really plan for. Yes, we have our birth plan all written out and ideas of how everything will go, but we of course have no idea how it will all actually go down. For this reason, I've been focusing my prayers more on the outcome than on the actual experience. Yes, I would love to be one of those women who can say I had a terrific and beautiful birth experience, but ultimately, all I want is a healthy and strong babe.

It's still so weird to me that I'm going to be a mom, that Tim's going to be a dad. Growing up, those titles were reserved for people who had perms, wore pleated pants, had mustaches, drank a lot of coffee, and liked to listen to news on the radio. Actually, Tim fits 3 of those characteristics already, ha! I think parenting is something I'm much more nervous about than physically birthing a baby. Should we be reading parenting books? Do we need to go over standards we think we should have once the kid is a little older? I think I'm so scared that one little "wrong" decision about something like how often to feed the baby or where the baby will sleep will end up snowballing into some kind of undesirable "condition" like a baby that cries all the time or doesn't sleep through the night until they're 2. This is probably just something I need to get over and we'll find our groove over time, figuring out what's best for our baby.

Baby Miller, we're ready for you and are so excited to meet you! See you soon, little one.