Erica...a cook after all?

I just got back from a long weekend away at our church's anual Women's Retreat. This is the first year I have gone and WOW was it fun! We left on Friday afternoon and stayed until Sunday so definitely a nice break away. I do have to say that I really, really missed my little girl though. This was the first time I was away from her for 2 nights and almost 3 days and it was really difficult for me!

I think the mornings and nightime was the hardest because I am used to being the first one in her room in the morning and she always greets me by saying, "Mama!" And of course, she has a smile that lights up her face which I love :-) At night she can be quite cuddly and loves to snuggle into you when you are holding her over your shoulder. Have I ever mentioned that she hmmmms and talks herself to sleep? She's done it since she started babbling as a newborn and it's so cute! She says complete nonsense but it's become routine and how she makes herself fall asleep. Ever since I can remember, when I rock her at night she babbles softly and says all kinds of things I don't understand :-)

On Thursday before I left I worked hard all afternoon and made my first homemade lasagna! It was so good and I think Bob really enjoyed it. If you know me, you know the cooking thing has been a slow process but I've actually thoroughly started to enjoy it this past year that I've been home and have been making some really yummy dishes! I had to take a picture of my masterpiece above, so cheesy I know (no pun intended), and then we all sat down to dig in. Bob was able to eat this on Friday as well which is how I planned it. I wanted to make sure my honey wasn't going to starve while I was away :-)

Other things I've cooked recently that have been really yummy and a big hit with Bob? Breaded pork chops, meatloaf, crunchy boneless skinless chicken tenders, mexican lasagna, and last night, a really good chicken recipe that calls for corn, salsa, black beans and creme cheese. You throw it all in the crockpot with the chicken and it turns out super deeeeelish! :-) I may just be getting the hang of this cooking thing after all! Woo-hoo!