Happy 4th of July from Jen and Paula!

Happy 4th of July! When I was trying to find a picture to put on here I happened to come across this video from one of my most favorite people! Paula wanted to wish you a happy 4th too...

Hard Workers!

Even on vacation, Dad and Breck find some spare time to get some work done. Dad is selling insurance while Breck is learning his colors, both are of equal importance.

I'm in Watercolor all week with the fam...life is GOOD!

Happy Birthday Aunt Cathy!

Miss and love you very much!

Run On Over...

And check out my sisters blog! You can find it right here.

Hurry over, Breck is already on his way!

Emily's Bachelorrette Party

I am a good month behind on my blogging, so here is my first attempt to catch up. We all headed up to Cincinnati on April 24th for Emily's Bachelorette Party! We had such a fun night. Emily had no idea where we were going so we blindfolded her on the drive up. Once we arrived in Cinci, we revealed to E that we had tickets to the Reds game, and if you know Emily at all, you know she LOVES the Reds :) After the game we went out to the Hofbrauhaus and another bar that had a live band. Most of the girls stayed the night in Cincinnati, but I ended up driving home at 3am. I had to be at church early the next morning to do Serve the City with my 6th grade small group. I was so tired the next day, but it was so worth it! Here are a few pictures stolen from Maria, enjoy!

The bride to be sporting her Reds hat complete with a veil!

Myself, Brittney, MJ and Maria on the shuttle to the game

All the girls with Mr. Redlegs

The 3 lovely bridesmaids, Maria, Erica and yours truly

PS- A very special thanks to Maria for planning the whole thing! It was so fun!

I'm Alive!

I have just been a busy bee since school let out for the semester! My Aunt Cathy and Grandmere came in for the Derby and I have been going non stop ever since. I just got done taking a 2 week class and getting my CPR certification. I'm done with the class but have been getting things ready for the 2 upcoming weddings. I blogged about them here. Emilys wedding is just over a week away! I can't believe it is already here.

One tradition that Emily, Maria and myself started a few years back is "Woman's Weekend." We pretty much hole up in my house for 2 days straight and venture out for a few select activities. One year we went and attempted completed a corn maze! It was a lot of fun, but a lot harder than we expected. Here is a picture of us in the midst of the maze! 

When planning for another Woman's Weekend, we decided it would be fun to go to the lake for a day. After doing some research, we learned that our budget would not allow for such a day. However, we are a resourceful group of girls! While a pontoon boat was out of our price range, the ever so classy Jon boat fit right into our budget. At a $40 day rental fee, it meant a day of fun for under $15 each, brilliant! So off we went to Laurel Lake to rent our fishing boat. Most people rent these boats with fishing rods and tackle boxes in tow, we came with wine, sunscreen, rafts and a cooler of food! We had the absolute best time. I could take up a whole blog post detailing that day. It wasn't even sunny outside, but we made the best of it and had such a good day! We did have one little glitch in our day though. We thought it would be a nice idea to "dock" our boat on the shore and get out and use our rafts for a bit. So we turned the motor off, not thinking, and enjoyed some time floating. When it came time to load back up, we quickly realized we had a major problem. We could not get that dang motor to start. Turns out, it isn't so easy to pull the engine cord fast enough to get the motor started. I have never laughed so hard in my life. I swore we were stranded. But the plot thickens...we remembered that they had put an oars in our boat when we left the marina. Yes! We could row to safety. So we started looking for our oars and realized that we ONLY HAD ONE OAR! Now why in the world would you only need one oar??? So Emily and myself just pretended we were on a romantic gondolier ride and let Maria row us to safety. Lucky for you, we have this on video. Enjoy! 

Just so you know, we did end up finding another boater that came aboard and helped us out. And no, we did not turn off our boat for the rest of the day. And just in case you were curious, this is a picture of the "S.S. Paradise" (our loving name for our vessel). Isn't she a beauty? We have since all agreed that that was one of the best days of our lives. 

So the reason I just told you that rather long story is to let you know that this magical day is going to be recreated on Sunday! We are going back to visit the SS Paradise in all her glory. It will be our final woman's weekend before we marry Emily off, so it will be bittersweet to say the least. This time we plan on getting 2 oars and a tutorial on how to start the boat once you turn it off :) I will hopefully get some pictures to share. 

I will also be traveling to South Carolina in June for Jon's wedding, but thats a whole other post ;) Stay tuned! 

Ding Ding Ding!

We have a winner for my most favorite picture of Breck! Kristin is becoming quite camera savy. Check out my man, notice the bug shirt :)

This Weekend...

I am so excited about this up coming weekend! So I thought I would share... Do you mind?

I am starting my weekend a little early and driving to Owensboro to meet Emmie Kate on Thursday! I blogged about Emmie here when she was first born, but have not had any time to get down there and meet her. Look how beautiful she is! I remember seeing Lynsie at her baby shower a few months ago and crying just looking at her sweet belly, so I can only imagine how many emotions I will have when I hold Emmie. Lynsie is the first really close friend of mine (other than my sister) to have a baby, and it has been such a neat experience. I don't even know if I will be able to sleep on Wednesday night! 

I will get home on Owensboro on Friday and then turn right back around and leave town for Emily's bachelorette party! We are leaving Friday night and coming home Saturday. That is about all the details I can give as of now, because Emily does not know where we are going! I will fill in with the details and pictures when I get home. Speaking of Emily, her wedding is only 45 days away, wow! This picture is obviously not directly related to Emily's party, but it seemed appropriate for the occasion. 

The BLC Celebrates Passover

Jineane, Maria, Ami, Mary and yours truly (looking a little rough 12 days post tonsillectomy)

The ever so lovely Ami hosts a Passover party each year and this year the BLC was there in full force (minus poor little Emily who had mono, we missed her!). It was held at a cute little cafe in downtown Winchester. I ate lamb for the first time and really enjoyed it. I know I say it every time I post about the BLC, but I really do love these ladies. Our April dinner meeting is on Wednesday at Bar Louie in Lexington and I can't wait!

PS- I stole this picture from Marias blog :) I currently don't have a working camera (minus the iphone) so I just steal pictures from my lovely friends :)

Swoon

Proud Aunt Alert

Pardon me while I show off how cute my nephew is (once again). They are in Watercolor this week and I am insanely jealous! Kristin sent this video today, look how big my man is walking! 

Currently Loving...

This is one of those songs that just makes you want to stop what you are doing and throw your hands up in complete and total worship. They have been playing it non stop on our local Christian radio stations and I love it.  It gives me goosebumps every time I listen to it. So I thought I would share it, hope you love it as much as I do.

"And I hear the voice of many angles sing, worthy is the LAMB! And I hear the cry of every longing heart, worthy is the LAMB! You are worthy, you are worthy!"

Slow Cooker Saturday...Take 1!

Ok, so here we go, it's the first installment of Slow Cooker Saturday! Remember, I blogged about it here.  I made this recipe on Wednesday night for the LOST crew and it was a huge hit! I found it on this blog and thought it sounded so yummy. It was easy to put together and cooked in 4 hours, which is nice if you don't have all day. 

Chicken Gruyere

You will need:

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts

1/4 lb gruyere cheese

1 box of chicken stuffing

1 1/2 cups of chicken broth or water (I used a little over a cup of stock and then water for the rest)

1 can cream of mushroom soup (I don't like cream of mushroom, so I subbed in cream of chicken)

1/2 cup parmesan cheese

Wash your chicken breasts and place them in the bottom of your slow cooker. Cover with sliced gruyere cheese.

Mix together stuffing, soup and broth and pour over chicken. Then cover the stuffing mixture with the grated parmesan cheese

Let cook for 3-4 hours on high and ENJOY! I served this with corn pudding, carrot soufflé, broccoli casserole and hoecakes. It would also be yummy over some egg noodles.  I highly recommend that you try it!

For dessert, I made a peach cream tart that was also very yummy. You can find that recipe here,

and you guessed it, the recipe is from Paula Deen! (shocking, I know)

Stay tuned for next week! Let me know if you have a favorite that you think I should try! 

Paula Deen

This picture was taken from my seat, just to give you an idea of how close we were!  Paula Deen was amazing, as usual. We arrived early enough and were able to score seats front row and center. I just about died when we sat down! 

So, remember when I said in this post that if I ever got to meet Paula Deen I would probably just break down and cry? Well folks, dreams do come true. Paula came out into the audience to mingle for a bit and was giving out hugs left and right. I almost had a heart attack when she came down our row. You better believe I was not going to let her pass without giving yours truly a hug, and she did! I got to hug Paula Deen! And keeping things honest here, I did cry (not a ton, but there were tears). I just couldn't believe that it was actually happening, I still am not sure that it has really sunk in. I know this may seem so silly, but for me it was the most exciting thing that could have ever happend. She also hugged Maria, which was equally as exciting! 

Paula talked to the audience for over an hour and took questions, she is so funny (and a little raunchy). I don't think I could ever get tired of seeing her live. Truth be told, I'm just waiting to meet Bobby Deen and for him to fall in love with me...now we're talkin'! 

I'm Big Time Now

See John Calipari's new kitchen...

See Jen standing in John Calipari's new kitchen...

John Calipari, the new head coach at UK, just bought a 2.2 million dollar home on Richmond Road in Lexington. I babysat for the family that owns the home for many years, so it has been a little strange hearing everyone talk about the "mega mansion" that I have spent so much time in. It really is a beautiful home and I am happy that Calipari wants to be in the heart of Lexington.  I remember seeing the plans when they were first drawn up for the property. Pretty cool! 

Click here for the entire story and more pictures of the house. 

Hope You Had A Wonderful Easter!

Love, The Cochran Family

Don't be alarmed," he said. "You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him.

Mark 16:6

Slow Cooker Saturday

So I am starting a new weekly blog post. We will see how long I stick with it :) I'm trying to be a better blogger, so hopefully having a weekly post will help. 

In an attempt to save time and money, I have decided to break out out the crock pot! I have always loved to put a big pot roast in the crockpot before I leave in the morning and then have a hot dinner when I get home. But that is as far as it has gone, pot roast. I have been researching all the things you can make in a crockpot and I am amazed! So heres the scoop. I am going to make one meal a week in my crockpot and share the results with you on Saturday's. I found a blogger who used hers every day last year and blogged all of her recipes and results. You can check out her blog here. I feel certain some of her recipes will be showing up on my weekly menu as well. My goal is that I will be able to save money by not eating out as much and utilizing the leftovers from my crockpot creations. 

What about you? Do you like to crockpot? Do you have any recipes to share?

Be looking for the first recipe and recap next Saturday! 

Tonsillectomy Update Day 11

Sorry for the lack of updates. I just haven't really been in the mood to blog. After day 3 things took a turn for the worse. I can honestly say that I have never felt such intense pain in my entire life. I woke up Wednesday night with nausea and threw up some blood, not fun. My doctor was able to prescribe me some anti nausea medicine which helped significantly, I was so thankful. Today is day 11 and I am starting to feel back to normal. I am able to go almost 8 hours in between pain medicine, versus every 4! So that is a victory. It still hurts to swallow (feels like a minor case of strep) and if I talk for more than 5 minutes it starts to swell up a little. But other than that, I really feel like I am almost through with it! If you are considering having this surgery and are over the age of 20, reconsider. Ha! Who knows how I will feel in a few months time, but as of now, I would never do it again. Thank you for your prayers! I so felt them. Now it's just a matter of getting back into the swing of life. Oh, and one positive of the surgery, as of this morning, I had lost 6 pounds, what girl wouldn't like that? ;) 

Tonsillectomy Update Day 2

I'm alive! I guess that is the good news. The bad news is that I am in quite a bit of pain. Here's the rundown of my past 2 days. 

I went into the surgery center yesterday morning around 10:30. They were running late so I didn't get taken back until around 12. I wasn't really that anxious at first, but having to sit in the waiting room for so long brought the nerves. It helped to have my momma sitting next to me. They took me back and gave me the IV. I talked them into putting it in my arm versus my hand (It is so much worse in the hand!) and she even gave me a stick of litacane to numb it. I didn't feel a thing! After a series of nurses, anesthesiologists and doctors came in, they were finally ready to take me into surgery. The anesthesiologist gave me some medicine that took me from "80 to 20" to help relax my nerves, and that is the last thing I remember. The surgery took around 30 minutes and I no longer had my adenoids (they atrophy in adults, but they weren't sure if I would still have them or not) so they just took out my tonsils. I remember waking up in the recovery room and the first words out of my mouth were "where is my mom?" Followed by, "I am in a lot of pain." They gave me some pain meds through IV and I fell back asleep for about an hour. I usually get so sick after anesthesia, and the thought of that just made my throat hurt. But my doctor also gave me some anti nausea medicine that worked like a charm. I felt so blessed not to get sick, that would not have been fun. The doctor met with mom while I was sleeping and told her that they were even worse than he had originally thought. So I am glad to be getting this done and over with now versus later in life! Then they took me into another recovery room where I got to see my mom and take my first dose of Vicodin. I was felling really good. I was even able to eat mcdonalds on the way home because my throat was still numb from surgery. When I got back home I immediately crashed on the couch for a few hours. When I woke up from my first nap, I got my first dose of reality. This was not going to be fun! I was in quite a bit of pain. I took a steroid to control the inflammation and another dose of vicodin around 4 which put me right back to bed. I still feel a lot of pain, even with the medicine, so I would hate to imagine what it would be like without it. I couldn't even make it through Grey's Anatomy, which if you know me, you know that means I was really not feeling good! I took my last dose of meds before bed around 10:30. Mom kept out my medicine for me to take if I needed it in the middle of the night, but I really didn't want to have to take it. I am concerned that I am going to get to the point where I can't sleep without it. I woke up on my own around 3 am and "toughed it out" by sucking on my numbing lollipop and managed to fall back asleep. Bad idea, no, downright stupid idea. When I got back up at 7am, I was in excruciating pain and had blood on my pillow. Thats when the tears game. I was just so upset. Mom quickly got me another dose of medicine and I felt better within 15 minutes, thank heavens for good medicine! Today has been an ok day. I think the key for me is to keep up with the vicodin and get plenty of water/rest. I did manage to take a look back there with a flashlight and it is straight up nasty! It was worse than I had expected it to look. Kristin came over today with Breck and got nauseous when she saw it, blah! I am still not able to really talk well or breath through my throat because of the swelling, but I am a happy girl after my pain medicine. The doctor told me that days 1-3 would be the easiest, which has me a little concerned, because so far it hasn't been easy at all. Apparently when you start to scab the pain increases substantially. But for now I am enjoying spending time on the couch eating ice cream! I will try to post updates over the next few days. I have such a wonderful family and friends and so appreciate the continued prayers, especially in the coming days when the scabbing begins. And the best part of all? I think mom and I are going to get massages tomorrow. I feel relaxed just thinking about it :D Hope your week/weekend is going better than mine! 

PS- if you have tried to call, I apologize for not answering :( Right now it is a bit hard to talk and ends up drying out my throat. But I SO appreciate the calls and will be sure to call back when I can get the pain under control. Love you all!

99 Balloons

Puppy Love

Breck sure does LOVE Sage! 

Going Under The Knife

So, after 23 years of sore throats and ear issues, I am finally going under the knife to have a tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy. Yuck! I found out a few weeks ago that I was going to be having the surgery, but just started to get nervous a few days ago. March 26th is the big day, which is a little over a week away. From what I have been reading online, this is not going to be a fun, at all. I see lots of ice cream and applesauce in my future :) Hopefully I will breeze through recovery and be back to normal in no time! 

Look Who's Walking!

So Chic!

Tallulah sporting her oh so chic oversized glasses!

We're At It Again!

Maria and I are headed to Cincinnati on April 8th to see Paula Deen! This will be our 3rd time to see her live. Both times, we have been the youngest in the room, by far. Truth be told, we just love her! I feel sure that if I ever got to meet her, I would just break into tears. I have her business card proudly displayed on my refrigerator. If you have never read her memoir, I strongly recommend picking it up. Talk about someone who has beat the odds. She is such an inspiration and an example of what a strong woman looks like. So, on April 8th, say a little prayer for us. We will be battling a group of middle aged women for a good seat, and they can be ruthless! 

Here are a few pictures from our past Paula related adventures!

This was taken in the gift shop at the Lady & Sons restaurant in Savannah. We drove roughly 10 hours out of the way (we were en route to Watercolor for the 4th of July) just to go to Savannah. We took the Paula Deen tour and also had lunch at the Lady & Sons. It was WELL WORTH the detour, we were like 2 kids in a candy shop. Click here to read Maria's recap of that trip. 

This was taken in November 2007 at the Paula Deen Live tour in Louisville. Notice the age group represented in the backgroud of the photo. Do you see anyone under the age of 35?...I don't either ;) Click here for another one of Maria's lovely recaps. 

Impending Nuptials

Emily and Chris are getting married in 80 DAYS! Oh my word, how can this be? While I am so excited for this wedding, it also comes with the deep sadness that Emily will be moving away. It is a touchy subject for me (and Maria!). One big cry fest will be on the books for mid June. Ok, enough with the sad news, Im not in the mood to cry. Let's talk about the good news! The wedding is going to be in Lexington at Talon Winery and I am honored to be a part of it. I really do love and admire Chris and am thankful Emily has found someone so wonderful. I love you both! 

Jon and Kristina are getting married in 88 DAYS. Yep, if you do the math, they are getting married the weekend after Emily and Chris! I am also very excited about this wedding. Kristina is from South Carolina, so the crew will be heading south to celebrate the big day! I have never been on a "vacation" with a large group of friends, so this should be interesting. We are all in the process of booking hotels, planning car pools, etc... I have a sneaking suspicion that this is going to be a weekend to remember. 

Emmie Kate

Lynsie called Sunday morning to let me know that Emmie Kate is here. I am so excited! Lynsie is one of my best friends, we met in college and ended up living together for a few years. I am so blessed to have her in my life. Lyns was set to be induced on Monday morning, but Emmie decided to come on her own terms. She has a full head of black hair just like her daddy. I am in Florida this week, but can't wait to get back to Kentucky to meet this beautiful baby girl. Robert and Lynsie are going to be such wonderful parents. I can't wait to see what the Lord has in store for this new journey in life. I don't have a picture of sweet Emmie to share, but I do have a picture of the GORGEOUS nursery that she will be coming home to. I will put up a picture of baby girl when I have one...I am hoping Lynsie will start a blog to keep up updated (hint hint).  

BLC March

BLC March- waiting in line outside the church

I know it has taken me a bit to post a recap of the BLC's trip to Elizabethtown, but better late than never! We all got together at my house Sunday morning around 5am. It was soooo early, but earlier in the week I called the church and they joked that we should camp out in order to get a good seat. We ate a quick breakfast and then got on the road by 6am. When we arrived, much to my surprise, there wasn't a huge line forming. We were able to stay in the van and chit chat for a bit before sending 2 at a time to hold our place in line. We were the first ones in the door for the 10:30 service. I was so proud :) The service started with worship (really good!) and then Kate came out. I saw her last year, but it was still a surreal thing to actually see her in person. She gave the same talk that she did last time, telling her story and the 6 lessons they have learned from the entire experience. I would guess that she spoke for around 30 minutes. She made a quick exit from the stage but they announced after she left that she would be having a book signing later in the afternoon. I was thrilled! The BLC headed off for lunch and then came back for the book signing. We were in and out in under 10 minutes. She was very friendly, and looked great. I was so happy we stayed for the signing, it was neat to actually have a short conversation with her. I always love anytime I spend with the BLC, and this trip had a little added bonus of getting to meet Kate. Stay tuned, in April the BLC is headed to Derby City to spend a day in Louisville. I can't wait!

If you are new to my blog, or need a reminder as to what the BLC is, click here. 

Sledding!

We got another round of snow this past weekend so Kristin and Lee took Breck out for another go at sledding. Here are a few pictures. Gosh I love him!

Fabulous Friday

Happy Friday! Seleta has just started a fun post every Friday called "Fabulous Friday." Check it out here. You can thank me later. Seleta has flawless taste, and I always love reading her blog. She lives in Watercolor and I first met her at the homeowners dinner when mom was getting some advice on lamps for the house. Ami actually won FF last week and is the proud owner of a Macbeth collection clipboard! Be sure to check out the Macbeth Collection website, they have so much cute stuff. I want to buy one of those buckets for every room in my house! In the spirit of spring and color, I thought I would share my new bedding as part of the fabulous friday post. I got this bedding for Christmas as a gift from my parents and LOVE it. It is so bright and cheery! On Tuesday I went to pottery barn in Cinci and bought some pillows to really finish out the look. Here is a rather poor picture (taken on my phone), but you get the idea. I think it turned out super cute! So Seleta, yes, you have a color loving diva here! :)