Shannon's World

Our dear friend Gretchen Landry visited the Friday before Memorial Day weekend. Gretchen lives in Atlanta but travels home to Indy every year for the Indy 500; I think that’s such a neat family tradition! She spent sometime with Libby and we were able to catch up, too (I am not sure what I was thinking but I didn’t get any photos of Gretchen with Libby!). When I was engaged, Gretchen gave me a recipe for Poppy Seed Chicken at one of my showers and I was telling her that it has become one of Mike’s favorite dishes. Low and behold, Gretchen has lost the recipe and I promised I’d get it to her. I figured I’d post it here so more can enjoy!

Poppy Seed Chicken
6-8 chicken breasts (I use a rotisserie chicken – easier and has more flavor)
1 can cream of chicken soup
8 oz sour cream (I use lite sour cream and it turns out fine)
poppy seeds
1/2 stick butter or margarine
Ritz Crackers (about 2.5 cups when crushed . . .I used the whole wheat ritz and they were fine)

Boil chicken until done. Cut into bite size pieces. Place chicken in a 9×13 greased pan. Mix the soup and sour cream. Spread over chicken and sprinkle with poppy seeds. Melt butter or margarine and add crushed Ritz Crackers. Spread over the top of chicken and sprinkle with more poppy seeds. Bake at 350 for 30-40 min.

*This dish can be prepared ahead of time and frozen. Just add the cracker topping before you bake it.

This photo cracks me up!  Libby has a group of stuffed animal friends that she just loves and “talks at” frequently: her three favorite “friends” are her Panda, Mickey Mouse and Libby Lamb.  She gets so animated and excited when she sees them; it cracks me up!

P.S. Check out the cleavage!

Because you wake up after your daughter has slept 10+hours, draw back the curtains, lift the blinds and find a light saber in your yard!!

Libby is doing awesome!! She continues to eat well (about 6.5 ounces, 5 times/day), grow and sleep well (10.5 hours at night). Her head control has improved a ton and she even rides in the Baby Bjorn facing forward (the first time we put her forward was at Costco and her eyes were the size of quarters – so much to see there!).

When lying on her back, Libby will put her feet down and scoot herself back; a few times she’s pushed herself so hard that she’s caught a little air and “crashed” back down. Libby recently started grabbing and holding objects and her hand-eye coordination is improving.  She has started putting her hand/fingers/thumb into her mouth (which I am not thrilled about, my philosophy has been you can take the pacifier away but you can’t take her thumb away).

Mike and I are amazed at all the changes that are happening so fast and the progress Libby is making. We are very lucky to have such a good natured baby.

We had a great Memorial Day weekend and extended stay at Grandma and Grandpa Cross’.  Libby met her Aunt April and cousins Jackson and Avery who couldn’t love her more.  Jackson and Avery were so good with her – very gentle and loving.  If Jackson said it once, he must have said it a thousand times, “Libby is so cute.”  Jackson spent a few extra days with Libby and I at Grandma and Grandpa’s and when he woke up one day he announced that “I think Libby is cuter today than yesterday!”  Libby is lucky to have such great cousins and she’s looking forward to seeing them again in July.

Libby is quite the little traveler: she slept through both flights!  I was very nervous about how she’d do, but she was a trooper!

I’ll post again this weekend, we have lots of pictures to post and a 12 week update (12 weeks today, I can’t even believe it!).