Strep Throat = Not fun

Well, Tuesday at work in the afternoon, my throat started killing me. I had achy neck, shooting pains behind my ears, hurt to swallow, headache, and it sounded to me like I was underwater. It was horrible. So I left a little bit early and went to the Urgent Care clinic. Yep, strep throat. And by the way, have you ever been tested of strep throat before? Who in the heck invented that?

"Hi my throat hurts"

"Let me shove this long prickly swab down your throat"

"I have a bad gag reflex"

"Just close your eyes"

WHAT???

#1 - Who would possibly think that a sort painful throat would benefit from being stabbed with a long prickly swab thingy? (Yes, I do understand they have to test it...)

#2 - "Just close my eyes" Who knew that would make my gag reflex improve? Well, she lied. It did not. If anything it made it worse. I nearly puked. I sort of wish I had because that would teach her to tell someone to "just close your eyes". Idiot.

#3 - I am admitting that I have a very small pain tolerance. Shh, don't tell Josh. But strep throat SUCKS! I had to stay home on Wednesday (darn), choke down some monster antiobiotics, and still feel like crap today!

And, since I am lucky enough to be on call for Christmas Eve night into Christmas day into Saturday morning at 8 am, I hope I spread strep to all the offices I have to visit! :) (not the patients of course...they are already in a crummy mood!)

Broken Arrow Christmas

Delayed post: Sorry!

This has been a crazy week so far! But last weekend we got to go see my Dad and Millie for Christmas in Broken Arrow! As always, we had a blast and ate way too much!

Ledger opened his gifts to a completely focused group...We loved watching his reactions! This was a toy given to him by Booma and Boompa! Josh put it together and helped him ride around on it. He sure seemed excited! Anyday now he'll be crawling and walking and keeping Mommy and Daddy on their toes!

Saturday night we all dressed up and went to cousin Jordan's birthday party. Boompa and his super proud grandson, Ledger, posing by the tree before leaving. I wonder who they were waiting on... oops! :)

At the party, Ledger got to meet his two new cousins, Lilah and Hayden. Lilah is not too fond of too many people but she sure loved her Auntie Em (Millie) and her new cousin Ledger. Hayden preferred Josh to anyone else. It was adorable! He kept hopping up on the couch right next to Josh and cuddling in to his arms. He would just look up to Josh and giggle. Super cute!

And just to prove that Josh and I overate...we took a picture, duh! We ordered a meal for two type thing and I think that it was more like a meal for four. It was huge! We barely made a dent! But I did get this cute scarf from my cousins! They are so hip! Thanks Peyton and Carson!

Lindsborg Christmas

This weekend we had our Christmas at Lindsborg with my Mom's family. It also happened to be Ledger's VERY FIRST CHRISTMAS! He is so adorable!


Please take note of his adorable Christmas Tree pajamas! He was fighting sleep to open gifts. I am not sure he was truly excited, but that is okay. His auntie Em still loves giving him gifts!

Saturday night, my Mom and Buddy had a 20th anniversary party! Can you believe they have been married for so long! :) The party was held at the Lindsborg American Legion where we had lots (and lots) of yummy food, drinks, and of course a DJ! It was a blast! All of our family and their friends came in for the bash!


One of Mom's favorite dance moves: the Gator! At Kendell's White Coat ceremony (about 4 years ago), Mom made Josh do the Gator at the after party dance. It was hilarious! This is them recreating the moment! He is such a good husband!

And best picture of the night? Yep, Ledger giving his auntie Em a kiss! Well, sort of. But at least it looks like it! Kendell and I were trying to get him to pose for a self photo when he either heard something or saw something and turned to look at it. Lucky for me, it looks like a kiss!

Best runner up for picture of the night? Yep, Josh and Grammie! I think that this is freaking adorable! Anytime your grandmother lays their head on your husband's shoulder, there is definitely a swoon moment!

It was a fabulous weekend with family and friends! We got to catch up with family we hadn't seen in awhile and we got to spend quality time with the family that we do get to see!

December Recipe of the Month - Better Than Brownie Cookies

So today I have off from work, which ended up being perfect! We have our G-Phi dinner tonight and it also happens to be our Christmas Party! This is my first Christmas Party with the girls so it will be a lot of fun. We do appetizers and then do a cookie exchange. I had Josh chose the type of cookie I was going to bring since he would have to eat the leftovers. He chose (out of 2 options...) these.

Better-than-Brownies Chocolate Cookies

Makes 24 large cookies

2 2/3 cups (about 16 ounces) bittersweet chocolate, chopped

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

4 eggs

1 1/3 cups granulated sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

½ cup all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon baking powder

1 cup semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper of a silicone baking mat.
2. Put the chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl and set it over a saucepan of barely simmering water, stirring occasionally, until completely melted and smooth.
3. In the meantime, stir together the eggs, vanilla and sugar in a medium bowl. Set aside.
4. In a small bowl, sift together the flour and baking powder.
5. Add the melted chocolate mixture to the egg mixture and stir to combine well. Slowly add the dry ingredients, folding them into the batter. Once all of the flour is incorporated, stir in the chocolate chips.
6. Scoop 1½ tablespoons of dough (a medium cookie scoop’s worth) onto prepared baking sheets. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until they are firm on the outside. Like brownies, do not overbake! Leave to cool completely on the baking sheets.

(Adapted from Culinography)

And just because I didn't get to show this before. I made this for the Pre Thanksgiving Celebration over at Angie's house. It also happened to be K-State's last game in which we fell a little short to Nebraska. However, the pie was beautiful!

Happy Thanksgiving Week!

Happy Thanksgiving Week!

This past weekend we had a practice Thanksgiving and made a full meal! It was...a success! Sort of. Everyone was super full and super happy!

On Monday, we had some friends over to celebrate Mary being in town! We got to see baby soph and play a few games! So much fun!

Then we headed to Broken Arrow to see family and spend the holidays there! The weather was beautiful and Josh and Dad even got to play golf! Friday morning, Millie made us pumpkin pancakes! They were fabulous! Really, awesome! I am sad that I wasn't hungry enough to enjoy more!

Friday afternoon we drove to Muskogee to see the other side of my family. Ledger got to meet his uncle Buddy, Great Granny, and aunt Tootie! He loved all of theattention!

Saturday was a little bit more relaxed... :)

We watched the OU v OSU game and since it was such a nail biter, Josh and Ledger remained at the edge of their seat the whole time!

Just a cute picture of the boy and me!

Happy "New Moon" Day!

So today, New Moon comes out. I am unfortunately not getting to see it on opening day. Can you believe that our movie theatre was SOLD OUT (well...sort of) until Tuesday? Angie and I are spoiled and refuse to go to movies unless they are in Fork and Screen or Cinema Suites. Pathetic, I know. But nevertheless, they are sold out in these theatres until Tuesday! So, I will post a review then. I am saddened by my morning radio show's review. Mike Evans only gave it 1 1/2 stars... :( But, he's old so that's okay!

We will, however, be watching The Blind Side tonight on opening night! So freaking excited for this movie. Mike Evans gave it 4 stars! He never gives 4 stars! I love Sandra Bullock and I love the story line. I sort of got obsessed during the draft this past year where they spotlighted his story on ESPN. It was amazing and the movie will be even more amazing! So, Happy "The Blind Side" Day too!

Update (nothing exciting!)

Thank you sisters for reminding me how behind I am on blogging. HOWEVER, not much has been happening with us.

-Falcon Football season is over (boo!)

-Went to the KSU-OU football game in Norman but forgot my camera. We had a blast seeing family and seeing our Cats almost pull it off! Next year Bob, watch out! We also took family photos but thought that I shouldn't post those since they haven't been "officially" released! Welcome back Bill...we missed you!

-Had an AWESOME G-Phi dinner on Wednesday, November 4th. Got to see some friends that I haven't seen literally in years! It was really nice. Even though I seemed to talk about the news and no one knew what I was talking about...crickets. Anyway, it was still a blast to see everyone! Plus, someone made the best cupcakes I have ever had! I even brought 3 home with me and didn't share with anyone! :) Thanks Jamie!

-Watched the KSU-KU game on Saturday in the comfort of my own home with friends and family over. Mom and Buddy were in town and we layed low all weekend...playing Bag-O and Aggrivation (awesome new game that they taught us).

-This week I am on call, which means nothing except that I have to convince hospitals that what they are ordering, is not, in fact, an emergency. And the sound of my pager is probably the most annoying sound in the world. Definitely more annoying than the sound on Dumb and Dumber.

-And yes, I do realize that it is November 10th and I have not posted a Recipe of the Month. For all of you on the edge of your seats, I will tell you what it will be. This weekend is the first time that I will have any time to do any baking so I will post pictures and recipe on Saturday. I am making a Jalepeno Garlic Bread loaf. :) YUMMY!