baby bump- 18 weeks

dear baby,

i’m so glad you’re finally starting to show yourself. i know it has only been 18 weeks, but i’m already anxious to hold you in my arms. i have felt you fluttering away in there for a couple weeks now, and each time i feel like i get to know you a little bit more [kick again?...like now, please].

your dad and i are having a lot of fun dreaming about what our days will look like with you in them. even though he can’t feel your movements yet, he still rolls over in the morning and lays his hand on my belly to tell you “good morning.” [just so you know, we’re big fans of that guy].

we still are waiting to find out for another two weeks if you are a boy or a girl, and we’re very excited to hear the news. we plan on being immensely thrilled either way, just in case you’re worried.

for now, stay warm and cozy and keep growing and getting stronger. i will take good care of you [which means less coffee in the morning? eh? what do you think?]

i love you so much already!

love, mom

happenings

Torri was inducted into the National Honor Society a couple weeks ago. Way to go, Torri! We're proud of you…but you do have some pretty FABULOUS teachers ;-)

And Avree and Rylie FINALLY were able to come and spend the night and hang out. Despite some hiccups along the way [i.e. Rylie didn't bring one of Av's bags, we couldn't find PUMPKINS anywhere and I had my heart set on carving pumpkins…and we never got around to roasting our marshmellows etc] We had a really great time! I love these girls deeply and dearly,. For those of you that don't know, I babysat these two during the summers [and many nights in between] when they were much younger :) and we had some good times ].

Our masterpieces:

Rylie

Mine….get it?

Avree

And of course, Brent's. Rockchallk Jayhawk baby…it's basketball season now! :)

a "stats" post

cravings: I really haven't been craving too much. Early on I just needed to eat to keep my belly happy, so I munched a lot on crackers and such. There was aday [as in literally a 24 hour period] in which I consumed an entire box of triscuits...which wouldn't be too bad but I ate most of the box with cream cheese and the rest with melted cheddar cheese mixed with sour cream [but I've been doing that since high school...it's how I keep my hips healthy :)]. This trimester it's been all about the carbs so far...which again, isn't TOO abnormal for me, but I think I'm just hungrier and carbs seem to stick around longer.

weight gain: This is the only time in life it is okay to announce this on a blog, right? At my last appointment I had gained 6 lbs. I'm sure that is a up a bit more, but my doctor said I was right on track with weight gain.

comments: "Are you SURE you're pregnant?" [my students] "You're totally having twins!" [my softball girls] "Name the baby Respucha!" [A student] Tears. [My mom...just kidding] And my personal favorite happened just yesterday when I told my students the baby is now the size of a sweet potato (thank you, fruit ticker): One student responded "Will it be shaped like a sweet potato?" [To which I said, I sure hope not! but baby, I will love you even if you are) And the second response was, "Will it taste like a sweet potato?" [To which I said, Do you plan on eating my baby?]

fears: listerios. I think this is just because it the the "THING" doctors are honing in on right now...and because there have been outbreaks from cantelope and spinach this year! Yikes. I heat my meat religiously [to which a coworker of mine scoffed at. His wife just had a baby and he said she ate deli meat all the time and the only thing wrong with his baby is that her hair stands straight up! :)] I'm also a little nervous about getting sick this winter... I don't do sick well anyway, so on top of that to be pregnant and not allowed to take much medicine...yeah, don't want that. Other than that just the typical fears that this little nut will stay in my incubator long enough etc. But I also know that God is looking out for me...but that faith thing is a bit difficult at times, isn't it?! Oh and this may seem like an odd one...but I'm a little nervous about my water breaking while I'm in the middle of class-- I may need to prep my students for that one.

general mood: I really haven't been too hormonal at all. Early on when I was so tired I was a bit cranky at times [but that is pretty typical...sorry, Brent]. The only moment I can remember would be when B and I were eating at Fazzolis [when OLIVE GARDEN just couldn't fit in our budget :)] and he reached over and dipped his breadstick in my pasta sauce. I snapped-S.N.A.P.P.E.D.- at him saying, "If you wanted SAUCE to dip YOUR breadstick in, then YOU should have ORDERED pasta and NOT a sandwich..." He responded perfectly-- by laughing. I love that man. I couldn't help but laugh too. But like I said, other than that...not too bad. I cried before I was pregnant, so that still happens. But overall I would say this is a consistently happy time for us.

things i have been surprised by: how excited and interested my students have been--which shouldn't have surprised me, as I have truly awesome students. That THIS seemed to be a popular question people felt the need to ask, "Oh, was this planned?" Seriously? Maybe my mom can ask me that, but someone I barely know? Not necessary. And furthermore, I'm almost 26, have been married 3 and 1/2 years, own a home, have a steady job..."Was this planned?" Really? [It was... but I just think that is a weird, unnecessary question...so don't ask me that, okay?!] Off soap box now. Other surprises? That it has taken me so long to show. I thought since my stomach has always been super flat that it would be noticeable right away. Finally at 18 weeks I've got a little something to show for the work my body is doing :). I also wasn't expecting to feel the baby move this early, since most women told me they felt movements around 20 weeks. I have felt movement for a couple weeks now, and it's fairly noticeable now. I suppose that means this baby is a MOVER!!

things i'm most looking forward to: To fall head-over-heels in love with this baby. To watch Brent become a father. To watch my parents and in-laws love up on this child. To see who the baby looks like... And to find out the sex in 2 weeks!

what i think is really cool and crazy: That something from Brent and something from me came together and is now a human growing inside of me...that the human body is capable of this...at how big this shows that my God is-- I really can't wrap my head around any of it.

things i'm doing to prepare right now: For me it's important to process these small moments, so I'm writing and journaling a lot and hope to share that with the babe someday. We painted the room gray this summer, and will leave it that color for boy or girl...but I'm getting other nursery ideas and plan on diving in head first with that once we find out the sex. I also have thought about registering and such, and will probably do that within the next month. Right now though, we're enjoying the daily new stuff that is coming our way [and probably will for the next, oh 20 years!].

What about you? What's the big stuff [or little stuff] you remember from pregnancy?

The evening sky

Monday night I drove out to a gravel road with my husband and sat on the hood of our car and watched the stars. We could see the Milky Way and the Big Dipper and Orion's belt. We faintly saw the Northern Lights which were the whole reason we were going out there-- but instead, we saw so much more.

We saw our past: laying on the trampoline in Brent's backyard talking about our future and the fear of leaving for college and leaving each other. We saw us on another gravel road, with the same name as the one we now share. He had just asked me to share it with him forever, and then played songs on the car's stereo and we danced in the moonlight to "You Had Me From Hello" and "With You." He held me and those future fears were answered.

As we sat on the hood of that car Monday night we also remembered moments from our individual pasts: taking my aging, nearly blind grandma to that same gravel road so many years before and seeing the joy in her face over actually being able to see the stars, which were so bright for her that evening. We didn't know this would be her last time to see those twinkling lights above before her vision was completely taken from her. Brent recalled winning a Courtwarming basketball game in a packed gym with fans going crazy. He drove to an empty gravel road, parked his old Toyota, and lay on the hood, soaking up the crystal clear night, not wanting the feeling of that moment , that victory, those cheers, to pass him by.

**
Goosebumps creep up my legs, I feel our baby kick inside me, and we decide it's time to go. Brent piles back in the car and toots the horn while I'm still sitting on the hood. I jump in the air before climbing in the passenger's seat and playfully punching him in the arm.

We drive the mile back into town holding hands, our past, our future, and those stars.

chicken

Okay. I have a confession. I HATE---hate---cleaning chicken. I try to avoid it. Which leads me to another confession: I often use chicken from a can [eek!! The preservatives! Oiy! I can just hear you...I know, I know, it's TERRIBLE!]

But here is the deal: When I think about what to make for supper and I realize it involves getting some chicken from the freezer and thawing it and then cleaning it, I almost always second guess my decision. We end up eating a lot of beef and pork! The sad part of this whole mess is that I LOVE chicken.

I hate thawing it. Whether I leave it out in the sink, or move it to the fridge for the day or WHATEVER... the juices and the smell just do NOT sit well with me. And then there is the little pieces of white, rubbery fat dangling and clinging to its surfaces. It is so slippery that I can barely grab it and I'm so grossed out I typically end up cutting off way more chicken than is necessary just to get rid of the fat. And then there are the veins!!!! Oh the worst part if you ask me. I know most people leave these in because in chicken they are not that big of a deal as compared to calf liver [I heard on a cooking show calf liver veins are just the WORST!], but if I see one I have to cut them out and end up mutilating the poor guy.

And here is my other confession: I'm talking about SKINLESS, BONELESS CHICKEN BREAST! HA! Most of you probably don't even bother to really look these over and just throw them in the marinade or the casserole or the whatever. I can't do it. When it thaws and I see just one miniscule piece of that jiggling, white fat on there I have to take action. I have, at one time in my life, cleaned out an entire chicken. I had to call Brent's grandma and ask her exactly how to go about it, which end to start at, which bones to break first etc, but I did it! Once. I know some of my relatives and a lot of my friends grew up on farms where they hacked off the head, watched the chicken do the little dance with blood spurting [OH, so THAT's where the whole "like a chicken with its head cut off" comes from...now you know], and then proceeded to pluck feathers, THEN rip it apart and clean it out. The nice part about that process though is there is no thawing...well, unless you grew up on a farm in Northwest Iowa and then maybe the chickens running around were always partly frozen?

Anyway, last night as I "cleaned" the chicken I almost justified buying those neat little packs of precooked and pre-cut strips of chicken breast. If they weren't like $10 a pound I might. I do like the $5 rotisserie chicken at WalMart for this reason, though.

But...if I ever win the lottery you can be darn sure what I won't be doing any more. I will hire someone to clean and cook my chicken for me!

**And on a more serious note. Thank you to those of you that said prayers for Jaque. She came through surgery and is doing well. They did find some cancer in her lymph nodes and had to remove them, but they are fairly certain they have gotten all of the cancer. She will begin chemo in about 3 weeks.
** Also, the weather here has been UNBELIEVABLE! Brent and I were out all night-- he cleaning the garage and me the cars. I love a good clean car!
** Also I am nearly 18 weeks and I believe this may be my last week of regular pants, as they are a bit snug. More pictures soon. I'm also feeling the baby move a lot more, which is exciting. We have received 48 votes on our "GENDER VOTE" to the right... and it is evening out at 23 for girl and 25 for boy. We only have sixteen more days until we know!! :-)

Prayer

I rarely use this space to ask for prayer…unless I'm asking for prayer for Brent or myself. And maybe I should ask more often. Many of you that follow this blog of mine are people of prayer; you breathe praise to our Father all day long. And that is the reason that I'm going to share this with you, so that some of you may do what you do best tomorrow on this person's behalf.

Her name is Jaque. She was diagnosed with breast cancer about a month ago. She is 33.

Her and her husband [who happens to be my principal] have lived in our community for many years now, and their Light shines brightly…and this diagnosis has not stopped them in sharing their faith and hope with others. Rather, they have used this heartbreaking scenario as a mouthpiece for the Mighty God we serve. It has been a truly incredible thing to experience.

Tomorrow Jaque goes in for a mastectomy surgery, and will also be receiving the port for her chemo. She has asked for specific prayer for peace, for both her and her husband, but also prayer that her arm will not swell [as this sometimes happens to women who have this surgery and it is irreparable].

As I was driving this evening I heard the song "Strong Enough," by Matthew West. I immediately thought of Jaque, and "prayed" the song for her. Some of the lyrics include:

"You must think I'm strong/ to give me what I'm going through/ Well, forgive me if I'm wrong/but this looks like more than I can do/ on my own/ I know I'm not strong enough to be/ everything that I'm supposed to be/ I give up/ I'm not strong enough/ Hands of mercy won't you cover me/ Lord right now I'm asking you to be/ strong enough/ for both of us/ Cause I'm broken down to nothing/ But I'm still holding on to the one thing/ You are God/ and you are strong/ When I am weak/ I can do all things/ through Christ who gives me strength."

If you read this tomorrow and feel so led, please say a prayer for Jaque. Pray that she may feel the peace that surpasses all understanding, and that His hands of mercy cover her and make her strong enough.

Thanks.

pictures of this-n-that & Brent's marathon #2

At the beginning of October my wonderful Mother-in-Law Joan had a birthday. So we celebrated. And got to hang out with cutey-pa-toot-ie Henry! Beth let me borrow her 50 mm lense for a bit so I snapped away. He had fallen and hit his lip earlier that day, but that didn't stop him from running around. He's getting so big!

Sidenote: This is Beta. The ONLY dog I don't mind being around.

And the pregnancy pictures you've all been waiting for…well, at least 3 of you. Here I am at 12 weeks. Looking super pregnant, eh? ;)

And 15 weeks. Starting to be able to tell a little bit more if I wear the right thing...

Or if I stand like this and kind of stick it out a little…. :-)

On a completely different note: One of my softball girls sent me these flowers last week thanking me for a great season. What a sweety.

Brent ran another 1/2 marathon this weekend in Kansas City. This one was much bigger than the last one he ran in April, and included thousands of other crazies like him :-). The race started at 7 A.M., so we drove down Friday evening and stayed with the ever-awesome Carrie [we worked together last year and she's from OKOBOJI so she has to be cool :)]. She and I stayed up way too late talking and then we all got up and headed to the race around 6. We met up with Brandon and Courtney, some friends of ours, as Brandon was also running the 1/2. I was amazed at the sheer number of people there. As soon as they were off, us girls went and got breakfast and then an hour and a half later returned to the finish line. I saw Brent coming and grabbed my camera, put it up to my face, and then he was crossing the finish line….sprinting at full speed. I snapped several pictures, but most of them were just blurs.

He's the skinny guy in the middle to the right of the guy in the blue.

I was unbelievably proud of this guy. He wanted to improve his time from his last race and hoped to finish at around 1:35. He finished at 1:34:58. [And as mentioned before, remember this was at a dead sprint!! :)] He was 17th out of 317 in his division…110th out of the 1981 men that raced… and 129 out of 4795 people that ran the race!! Like I said, I was and am unbelievably proud of this guy. Way to go, Brenters!

Our friend and fellow freak for running the 1/2, Brandon. :-) Great job, guys!

The pregnant wife who didn't run the marathon…not that being pregnant had anything to do with that :-)

job idea

I think that Olive Garden should hire me to write food reviews. Seriously.

I think their food should be served in HEAVEN.

Brent and I hadn't been out for a long time. And I'm pregnant. And we wanted some time "out of the house, alone." So Brent uttered my 6 favorite words: "Want to go to Olive Garden?"

Do I want to go? Are you kidding me? I would eat there every meal, every day, for my entire life. Yes, even breakfast. Who says you can't have bruschetta for breakfast?

We piled in the good 'ole Subaru and headed to St. Joe. 35 minutes later we pulled into the parking lot and I could hear the angels singing. We walked into the blessed establishment, my senses went into overdrive at the smell of such wonderful scents swimming through my brain, and we grabbed our timer and headed back outside to wait "25-30 minutes." I would wait 2 hours to eat there. I'm sure I've waited over an hour at some locations before.

I could barely carry on a conversation while we waited for our timer to buzz. All I could picture were the breadsticks and pasta and...oh my watering mouth nearly salivated into my lap.

The buzzer buzzed and I felt like everything turned from black and white to color. I leaped from the bench, nearly running over two small children and an elderly man....and my husband...in my attempt to get to the door.

A sweet teenage girl ushered us to our seat. A booth. This would make our dining experience even more perfect. I opened the menu, poured over the words as if I were reading "The Sermon on the Mount," and then we ordered.

We began with an appetizer of spinach artichoke dip with amazing bread, then for the main course decided to split Fettuccine Alfredo with chicken. Such a simple choice for such an important evening, you may be thinking. But you see, it is only the best of the best that can do simplicity well.

And then our bowl of salad came with breadsticks, butter dripping from their garlic-y golden brown tops. We bowed our heads and praised our magnificent God for the abundance of delicacies before us.

Let me break the events of the next twenty minutes down for you:

The salad: There is nothing, I repeat NOTHING, like an Olive Garden salad. From the mixture of the greens to the olives, to the croutons, to the freshly grated cheese [OH don't even get me started on the cheese!], to the splash of tangy, sweet, perfect dressing-- there is NOTHING like an Olive Garden salad.

The breadsticks: As aforementioned, they entertain the pallet with butter and garlic and warm goodness that tastes like a perfect walk on a perfect spring day. I ate one, and then proceeded to eat another while scrapping the salad bowl clean with it.

The spinach and artichoke dip: There is no appetizer that will leave you unsatisfied at Olive Garden, and this is just one example. Straight from the oven, its warm, creamy goodness has the perfect ratio of artichokes to spinach. Both are finely cut up, as well, so one is not to receive a giant chunk that he or she is unprepared for. The thin sliced bread with which it is served does not disappoint either, and we ate and ate, wishing the bottom of the bowl were unending.

ENTER ROUND TWO OF EMPTYING A SALAD BOWL AND BASKET OF BREADSTICKS. ENTER ROUND TWO OF TRUE HAPPINESS AND ECSTASY.

The Fettuccine: From the moment our waitress placed the steamy plate of noodles on our table, I knew we were in for a treat as the smell overtook my desire to continue eating the dip. I split the large portion onto both of our plates and slowly twirled the pasta around as to enjoy each moment with this meal. As I placed the bite in my mouth, I realized that life is worth the living because this meal exists. This was the absolute best plate of fettuccine I had ever been given.

The end: I looked up at Brent, with tears in my eyes, knowing that I could not fit another bite of food in my stomach. We still had some dip left, 3 breadsticks, and about 1/3 of our fettuccine. I sighed, and then flagged the waitress down. She scooped the remains into two white boxes, gave us our Andes mints [another reason this place= perfection...ANDES mints! Hello! They are not just skating by with plain 'ole peppermints, no siree], and we gave her our debit card. I didn't care what the ticket said, it was worth every penny [and I RARELY feel this way].

We made our way to the car- stuffed, happy, practically dancing.

Fast forward to yesterday in church. As we wrapped up and said our goodbyes and headed for the door, I began the traditional "What-should-I-make-for-lunch" routine in my head. And then I about jumped off the sidewalk when I remembered: I remembered that we had leftovers from OLIVE GARDEN.

It was yet another good day in our household.

poll

I figured out a better poll. I was going to update it by entering the same number of votes that had already been accounted for, but it will only let me vote once. Whoops! I messed it all up. If you'd already voted…simply do it again, please so I have an accurate count [because trust me folks, this MATTERS! ;) ha]

It was 10 to 3 in favor of BOY so far. Vote again?

Thoughts on Gender

Brent and I have chosen to figure out what our baby’s gender is before birth. Our sonogram date is November 10^th. And I feel like the days will crawl by until that appointment.

I’ve thought a lot about what the little peanut [or ORANGE] inside of me is going to be and how that will determine so much about the days ahead of us. It is much deeper than pink or blue, as those of you that have raised both sexes [or been around both sexes] know.

It is amazing all the different ideas out there as to how parents can “plan” or “increase their chances” for having a certain sex. I think all of that is pretty bogus though, as I’ve seen a mighty God changing and shifting things according to His plan all my life.

Brent and I are simply excited to have a child. To create a life is a big, profound, beautiful thing, and the sex of the baby does not change that. However, we have had the “gender talk” [I put that in quotations like it is actually a thing! :-). We both instinctively thought girl at first. Yes, a girl would be perfection. Why? Well for me, I’ve been around little baby girls most of my life, and very few boy babies have graced my presence. I have recently had the pleasure to be around two BEAUTIFUL girl nieces that have won me with their soft pink chinks and coos and girlish ways. Oh… and I am a girl, so I know a thing or two about that. For Brent, he feels that some of his closest relationships have been with girls. He has always been close to his sisters, so he isn’t afraid of girl emotions. And he too has become quite smitten with those two nieces of ours. We thought about bows and dresses and pigtails and little girl giggles, and continued to think…oh the joy that is GIRLS!

But then we started talking about boys. We both eventually want boys, so why not start with one [or two, as my students are convinced I’m carrying twins :)]? Growing up when I would doodle in class and dream of my wedding dress and my future house and eventually my future children, I always wanted to have a boy first because I always kind of wished I had an older brother [not saying I don’t love Kali, but I knew she wasn’t going to “protect” me from other guys the way a brother would]. And what is there not to love about dirt and camo and four wheelers and sports and sweat and slime and….all that. And literally ANYONE I’ve talked to that have raised both sexes say, without prompting, “Boys are WAY easier than girls.” And besides, Brent’s mom is convinced there are 5 boys in our future. And we adore our FIVE nephews.

I know a daughter’s connection with her mother is different than a son’s, but both are equally wonderful. All of this to say, Brent and I realize that we don’t know what we want/need in our life at this point, but God does, so we’ll let Him do the handiwork that he is oh-so-good at.

I have put a pull up on the side bar of this blog where you can VOTE on what you think we’re having [scratch that…what I’M having…Brent will not be the one all THAT in about 5 months]. Just for fun. So do it. I dare you.

And one final note about gender that I am very embarrassed about, but will share anyway: LATE ONE NIGHT [let me emphasize it was AT LEAST 8 o’clock and I was EXHAUSTED :)], Brent and I were having the “gender talk.” I was expressing my inexperience with boy babies in comparison with girl babies. And then I uttered these words: “And ANOTHER thing…I don’t understand a lot about the whole CASTRATION process, so that would be a whole new realm for me.” Yes, I said CASTRATION instead of CIRCUMSICION. Oh my. I realized it about ten seconds after it crossed my lips. [Dear future child: If you are, in fact, a “son,” I apologize profusely at ever uttering such crazy things. I will make CERTAIN that in the hospital you are not castrated. Sincerely, Your Loving, Rambling-of-nonsense, Mother. ] Please do not let this story sway your vote :)

Perspective and Remembrance

Tonight we lost our last softball game of the season. By one run. In the bottom of the seventh. To our biggest rival. It stings a bit.

But then I looked at the date and remembered that tomorrow is October 6. And that stings a bit more.

Tomorrow marks 12 years since Sgt. Bob Kimberling was killed in the line of duty as a highway patrolman. Tomorrow marks 12 years since my family lost one of our closest friends. Tomorrow marks 12 years since his family lost a husband and a father.

So tomorrow I will be able to get over our loss tonight. Because it wasn't really loss. It was a game. And it had high points and low points and fun points and nerve-wracking points…but it was a game.

My dad mentioned two years ago when I blogged about Bob's death that he remembers thinking at the funeral that he didn't want people to forget; he didn't want Bob's memory to die with him. I don't think it has. Tomorrow morning a large group of friends, family, patrolmen, and other servicemen in the area will meet for their annual "Kimberling breakfast" in remembrance. Drivers on interstate 29 will drive by the section dedicated and named after him. Students and teachers at his high school will set foot in the "Robert Kimberling Gymnasium" and they will remember.

And you who are reading this… you will remember. So thank you. Thank you for remembering.

We all miss Bob, but we have the blessed assurance that he is in a far better place, in far better hands.

Our God is still faithful. And so tomorrow I will have perspective, and I will remember.

[To read my past accounts of this day, click HERE and HERE]

A few things and a recipe! Yum

- Here is a little update for those of you wanting/needing it: I am feeling great, as far as my pregnancy goes. I'm at 15 weeks now, and starting to show a little bit. However, I woke up Sunday with a bad head cold, which has proven to be a real bummer. I think today I'm feeling a little better, but my nose just won't stop!!! Argh.

- For those of you that like to know where I'm at with teaching: My 8th graders just started "Tuesdays with Morrie," my sophomores are in the middle of their non-fiction unit, and my Juniors are wrapping up their early american lit. unit [puritan writings]. Things are still going well. [Oh and our football team WON the homecoming game! Hooray!]

- Softball: We are 11-10, I believe [I started to lose track]. I think this says a lot about the coach and girls I work with, as we started off really struggling, and now they have fought back to be above 500. We play our first game of districts tonight against our biggest nemesis.

- And now for the recipe: I discovered this on the back of a "Knorr Pasta Sides-chicken flavor" package and thought I'd give it a go. It is now a go to recipe of ours. It is super quick [especially when my lovely husband helps with the chopping] and delicious. Tons of flavor. And it is just as good, if not BETTER, on day two...and three! :) It makes a lot for two people. I added my additions/modifications in italics.
INGREDIENTS

1 package (7.5 oz.) refrigerated flaky buttermilk biscuits I use butter flavored crescent rolls. Delicious. But I'm sure there would be more bread if you used the biscuits. 1 box (10 oz.) frozen mixed vegetables, thawed I like to chop my own fresh veggies. I usually use broccoli, carrots, red and green peppers, and onions. I don't like peas, but those would be good in this too I suppose if you're one of THOSE people. :) 1-1/2 cups water 1/2 cup milk 1 package Knorr® Pasta Sides™ - Chicken 2 cups cut-up cooked chicken or turkey When I want to be really quick, I use a can of chicken [cheating, I know] and it is really good in this. 1-1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (about 6 oz.), divided Or more...if you're a cheese addict like me [but this is A LOT of cheese: )]

PREPARATION

1. Preheat oven to 450°. Spray deep dish pie plate with nonstick cooking spray. Pull biscuits apart and press on bottom and up sides of pie plate. Bake 8 minutes or until biscuits are golden; set aside. Decrease oven to 350°.
2. Bring vegetables, water and milk to a boil in medium saucepan over high heat. Stir in Knorr® Pasta Sides™ Chicken Flavor and return to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium and cook covered, stirring occasionally, 8 minutes or until pasta is tender. Stir in chicken and 1 cup cheese.
3. Spoon into prepared pie plate, If it is really runny at this point, usually letting it set a minute or two before pouring it into the plate helps... then sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Bake uncovered 10 minutes or until cheese is melted. Also terrific with Knorr® Pasta Sides™ - Creamy Chicken.

I figure that, depending on how much chicken and your variety of veggies, the cost per recipe is about $8-10. That would mean that the cost per serving is less than 2 dollars!