Update: Most recent Ultrasound



Our sweet baby's profile
 at 28 weeks. 


Hello all,
Thank you again for all your powerful and effective prayers!!!  I am so encouraged by all of you.  Thank you!  So how do I sum up a long appt.?  Let me start with we left our appt. very encouraged.  Two encouraging appts. this week!  While I would like to say that the malformation in our baby's cerebellum is gone, that is not the case.  But what I can say is:

~ The cerebellum, despite it's malformation is continuing to grow!!!  Both sides are maturing at equal rates along with the rest of the brain anatomy.  Our Dr. expressed, that she was "surprised" to see that and that she wasn't expecting to see what she saw in this follow-up ultrasound  (u/s).  She referred to the rest of the brain development as looking, "gorgeous"!!!  That was nice to hear. 

~ The rest of the babies body appears to be developing great and there appears to be no problems any where else!  She is measuring a whopping 3lbs + at this stage and like Avery and Ben, most likely will be a big baby!  My amniotic fluid is measuring on the high end of normal, which makes me a little nervous...and physically uncomfortable.  But our Dr. was not concerned about it and doesn't plan to want to see us back for 5 more weeks.  So I am trying to relax about that and not worry.  Just hard with having a history of too much amniotic fluid with Payton.

~ She also reviewed our baby's heart and said that it looked great and she did not detect any obvious defects or complications in her little heart!!!

~ Therefore all this truly leads her to think that the cerebellum malformation is highly likely an isolated event and that it is perhaps not linked to a chromosomal or gene related complication.  Though we will not know for certain until she is born and we can do a chromosome analysis. 

~  We will also truly not really know about the true development of our baby's brain and the effects it will have on her life, until she is born and we can do an MRI, and even then, according to her and the neurosurgeon.... we might not really know.  It will take watching our little one grow and as time reveals, our answers will come.  That is hard.  But again, I rest in the Truth of not worrying about tomorrow, for today has enough problems of it's own and that none of us knows what tomorrow brings.  It is just hard looking ahead with the knowledge we have.  I really do think ignorance is bliss sometimes.  I am grateful that none of us really knows what tomorrow brings... as only our Father does.  Because really it can feel like more than we can handle when we do know a little information... I am sure many of you can relate in your own ways. 


~  Lastly, another really great thing that came out of yesterdays appt. was... I had asked our Dr. the question of, "What about other patients with similar experiences and what were their outcomes"?  And she said, "most of the patients she loses knowledge of after about the first month after birth, due to her position of just caring prenatally for the mothers".  So she had nothing to share with us.  So I asked if, "we could stay in touch so we can update her on our baby's progress" (because I am putting my hope in and resting on a great outcome for her).  I said, "if there's anything positive and hope giving that we can bring to her, that might encourage another family to make the decision to carry their baby to term and not terminate because of such a prenatal diagnosis, that we would love that"!!  She expressed, what seemed to be very genuine enthusiasm towards our keeping in touch. 

And I really mean it!!!  I will... I have read way too many things on-line where people have aborted their babies because of the Dr's influence and a similar diagnosis... I pray that we can prevent this for someone else and save some lives!  During this conversation with the Dr. I was reminded of something that was said in one of our pastors sermons two weeks ago at church.  He said, "sometimes you are allowed to go through something in life, so that later on you can be an encourager to someone else who is being obedient in their situation".  If there is one thing I have been sure of since our first appt. when we learned of our baby's possible condition and that is, "It is 100% God's Will for us to carry her to term, to delight in her and to place her in His hands".  I have never felt more obedient about something in my entire life and know it is the right thing to do.  I told Aren, that night on the way home, that I felt that was a statement I was meant to hear and it was encouraging to me.  So now as I look back, on that sermon and the conversation I had with the Dr... I am certain it was intended for me to hear and that is good! 

So given the week and weekend... with Payton's birthday and two big appts... it has been an overall positive and peaceful week.  I felt like I was on a bit of an emotional high yesterday after the appt.  and for some reason I plummeted a bit later last night.  So please... continued prayers would be so appreciated!!! 

Here are our specific prayer requests: 

1. Praises for the growth and health we are seeing thus far!!!  Continued prayer for baby to develop and grow in a "healthy" pattern.  Complete healing for her cerebellum. 

2.  For the Lord's peace to be in our hearts and souls.  Sometimes it is hard to fight off the fear, anxiety and grief.  But overall we are truly peaceful and hopeful!

3.  For Full-term pregnancy and for amniotic fluid to maintain a healthy range for what my body and the baby needs. 

4.  For joy in the waiting...

5.  For our next appt. which will be towards the end of June.  And for our Dr. to be just as thorough as she has been and for her to have the wisdom and discernment she needs in caring for us.  If there is a problem or something she needs to catch or see, that she will see it! 

6.  For God to receive the Glory through all of this... for His faithfulness to be seen and for His love to be felt by all of us.  Jeremiah 29:11...

Thank you everyone, we are truly so grateful for your support! 
Love you all!

Update: Neurology Appt.

Hello all!  I just wanted to write a quick note on our appt. today with the neurosurgeon. It was an overall encouraging appt. We were not told anything negative, however the Dr. did not feel that he could really offer up any concrete advice to us at this point. He was not able to view the most recent ultrasound results that showed the malformation in our babies brain, due to poor quality images that were faxed. So that was discouraging a bit to us, but he expressed that it wouldn't really have changed his perspective at this point any way. He read over the notes and basically said that, at this point we just have to wait to see how she is after birth and once stable do an MRI, and that will give a clearer picture of what is happening. The positive he shared was that, "if this 'malformation' is an isolated event for our baby, meaning no chromosomal issues or other brain anatomy complications... that it is very likely that this condition could have little to almost no affect on her... that she may do just fine with it... and that we may notice some gross motor delays", but other than that he wasn't overly discouraging. He also said that he "would have liked to tell us everything is going to be just fine, but he said he couldn't do that either". So we feel we got a rather cautious, conservative, yet hopeful opinion. But what it really boils down to in his opinion, is we just have to wait and see... that "a lot of developing still has to happen" and he DID say.... that "it is possible, that the cerebellum and vermis (the areas that have the inadequate growth... could continue to develop more!!!" So we were really encouraged by that! So thank you for your prayers! The Dr. even made reference to "prayers" being said to aide in what we are desiring for in our little ones growth! That was cool to hear! And an answer to one of our specific requests too!

So thank you everyone... keep up your powerful and effective prayers! Please! We will be going in on Thursday for our high level ultrasound with the perinatologists (high risk maternity doctors). So continued prayers please. We will be doing another ultrasound and checking growth.

1. Let's pray for complete healing!
2. No other growth or development concerns, all other healthy anatomy and rate of growth
3. For a thorough job to be done on the u/s and for a healthy echocardiogram (heart ultrasound)
4. For wisdom and discernment for the Dr.
5. Peace for us and God's presence upon us during the appt.

Thank you so much everyone. We love all of you and we are so grateful for your support and prayers. Aren and I, both, have GREAT peace in our hearts.

p.s. I will try to send out emails...but the easiest place to get information is to visit here.  I don't want to or mean to leave anyone off of the email...but I may by accident... so please check the blog from time to time if you haven't heard from me in awhile... might mean nothing new going on or it may mean I had a lapse and accidentally left you or someone else off the email... but the blog is a good reference point...I will try my best to update everyone here. Thank you!

Her impression... 9 years later

I am up past midnight... welcoming in the 28th.  The 9th anniversary of my beautiful baby girls birth day.  Payton would be 9 years old today.  The memories of the eve of her birth are still so fresh in my mind, that at moments it feels like only yesterday.  With everything we have been experiencing lately, the memories seem to be even clearer lately.  Years past, the anticipation of Payton's birthday felt in my heart much different than it has this year.  I've been a little distracted.... a little focused. 

But tomorrow.... will be a day set aside just for you sweet baby girl.  You are not here for us to throw you a big 9th birthday party, but we are setting the day aside to honor your memory, celebrate your life and to feel the love we have solely for you, our precious little one.  I write little one and my mind immediately wonders.... who are you in heaven?  I'll have to wait till I see you there to know.  We love you baby girl, our Love Bug.  You are so missed.  You are never far from our hearts and our continued thoughts.  You will always be missed, never replaced and always cherished. 

This past week your little sister, Avery and I have been going through tubs of clothing getting ready for your other little sister's birth.  Avery asked me with great excitement if we could go through your tub of clothing I've saved.  As we explored, oohed and awed over every little thing in your box, the one thing that impressed Avery the most were your tiny, delicate socks.  She asked me, "Mommy were Payton's feet really that tiny"?  I showed her the foot mold we made of you the night you went to be with Jesus, she was able to see a 3-d version of your feet and see just how tiny they really were. 

Even I.... had almost forgotten.

So I look at this photo your father took of the two of you and I am so touched and reminded by how one tiny set of feet could make such an enormous impression on our hearts and lives.  Our hearts will forever be impressed with your life... your presence, precious daughter. 

We love and miss you. 

Happy 9th Birthday Payton Hadley.

A little update...

So I've been wanting to update everyone on how we are all doing.  Thank you to EVERYONE who have been so supportive these past couple of weeks and this past weekend too!  After the last post, life seemed to calm down and we felt so grateful for normalcy to be about our days and home life.  Not a lot has changed and yet so much has changed....where do I begin?

Shortly after my last post, I was abundantly blessed by a gathering of women who came alongside me and prayed over me, the baby, Aren and the kids.  It was truly one of the most wonderful moments.  Thank you ladies for each and everyone of you who came alongside of me.  Both Aren and I have truly felt held by His love and your love.  Thank you! 

We also decided to find out what the babies gender was...we were really wanting initially to let this be a surprise as we never did this with the other three.  But as time passed, we felt that it was information we wanted to have.  For various reasons, we changed our mind and called the doctors to find out.  So for those that do not know.... drum roll please.... It's a GIRL!!!  We are thrilled!  So is Avery!  She really wanted a baby sister.  Obviously, we would adore, love and want a little boy too...the babies gender has little importance to us in the grand scheme of things.  As I have said all along when asked what we wanted, "It doesn't matter to us, we just pray for a healthy baby".  But we are excited and are busy picking out pretty girl colors for the new bedroom we're having built in the loft upstairs for her.  It is turning out great!  The kids think it is so cool having this change added to our home.  And it has been so therapeutic for us to be planning for this sweet little one... as we truly want to focus on hope for her. 

It has been a tough journey this past month.  The balancing act of pushing fear away and doing what all people do when they are going to have a baby and that is plan and look forward to your future with that baby in it.  We've been trying to rest and trust in God's plan for us and our baby girl.  And to fully walk in faith daily and not in fear or anxiety.  It has not been easy. 

Last weekend, Mother's Day weekend... we had a bit of a scare.  Friday night I did not sleep well and spent most of the night having what felt like Braxton- Hicks contractions all night.  They ranged in strength and frequency.  They were enough to concern us and our doctor had us go in Saturday morning to the hospital for monitoring.  We were very nervous, given our experience in having Payton prematurely and feared we were heading down that road...but way too early.  I am happily 26 weeks this week and grateful to be at home and doing better.  My uterus acted up a bit for them, enough for them to see what I was talking about, but not enough to keep me there.  I was sent home to take it easy and call if things changed.  I have continued to have them, but they are decreasing daily.  I had a conversation with my OB today and he wanted to encourage me at this point to continue to take frequent rest periods throughout my day and not overdo it, no exercise, pelvic rest, and no lifting.  But other than that, he wanted to reassure me and encourage me at this point to go about my normal routine as much as I wanted.  He is not highly impressed with 20+ Braxton-Hicks contractions in a day and reminded me that all the test they performed, came back great and that I am not in preterm labor. My family and I have been having me rest a little more than usual and they've helped come alongside me and give me a couple of days of lots of resting.  But for the rest of the day today I am going to be resuming life as normal, take frequent breaks and sit, stay hydrated, empty bladder frequently and observe my OB's precautions.  But it feels scary.... 

Over a year and a half ago I bought two Louis Giglio DVDs that were on the $5.00 family perks at our local Family Christian store.  I had not had a chance to watch them yet and practically forgot I had them.  We chose to watch his, "How Great Is Our God" video, on Saturday night.  It was JUST the encouragement we needed!!!  I am telling you...God is amazingly faithful and He truly does work upstream to bring things into our lives at just the right time to encourage us.  Aren and I both were in absolute awe of this 41 minute video.  It is one I wish everyone could see.  I HIGHLY encourage it.  It was tailored made for us in that moment in all we are going through with our baby girl.  Here is a little Godtube clip of it... I have it if anyone wants to borrow it.  SO GOOD!!!  PLEASSSSSSSSSSSSSSEEEEEEEEE Watch it!!!  It will change how you view human creation, God and His hand in it.  http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/1849169 (BTW...this is the week our babies eyes are open!!!... amazing timing too, with the video reference!!!)

Lastly, as far as updates in appts. go, we are scheduled to meet with a pediatric neurosurgeon on May 29th and then be seen by the perinatologist on May 31st.  We have asked the elders from our church to meet with us and pray over us and are planning a healing and prayer meeting on Saturday, May 26th.   We are still determining what time that will be and because this is a public blog I will not be posting the time.  But if you are interested in attending please email, text or call Aren or I and we will let you know the time.  We would like to invite anyone who would like to attend that moment with us to come together and pray over our sweet child.  We know that God hears our prayers and He can answer yes to them if we are asking for healing in quiet prayer alone.  But we are wanting to be obedient to what God's word says, James 5:13-16 NIV

Prayer of Faith
13 Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. 14 Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. 16 Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.

We trust that God's Provisions over our lives and our baby's life are Sovereign, no matter what.  But we are doing all we can to put our Faith in Him and seek Him during this time... this is one of the steps in doing that.  So please join us if you are interested and able.  We'd love to come together this way.  It would not require anyone else to pray out loud, it would simply mean your presence is there.  The time will be for the elders to each intercede for us and for all of us to come together and make the request of healing and comfort from God.  Also, to the amazing women who were at the first prayer meeting... please know that I do not ask or expect anyone of you to attend this one too.  You are welcome to be there if you want, but your support has been a blessing already. 
 
Lastly, many of you have reached out and have expressed a desire to help and are asking how.  Thank you, thank you and thank you.  I am so encouraged by the amazing family and friends we have around us.  We appreciate everything you've done and have offered to do.  With my restrictions being lifted and our attempt to resume life as normal, we are good on meals right now.  But thank you.  If things change and I need to have greater restrictions, than this will be a great help.  But right now I think we are good.  Aren and I planned out a menu this week that is simple and quick to prepare and my amazing husband has been helping out so very much to lighten my load.  Thank you so very much to Mema/Kathy, Grandma B, Aunt Kelly, and Brenda for helping with the kids the past couple of days.  Your support has been greatly appreciated! 
Prayer....
This is what we need!!!!  We believe in it's power.  We know each of your prayers are heard and we believe they hold great power over our lives.  Thank you!!!  Here are some specific prayer requests we have at this time:
 
1.  For no preterm labor, for Braxton-Hicks contractions to subside, decrease or not increase and affect my cervix in any way.  For me to make it to 37+ weeks. 
 
2.  For upcoming drs. appts. and for us to not to allow fear to overshadow God's peace.  For healing!!!!  For hopeful news from the neurosurgeon, for an encouraging ultrasound.  For compassionate staff and for Christian medical staff to be a part of our care to encourage us. 
 
3.  For peace and joy as Payton's 9th birthday is approaching on May 28th.  And for us to not allow the timing of all of this to cause us to constantly refer back to our experience with Payton.  It was Mother's Day weekend, 9 years ago that I went into preterm labor with her.  So the timing of this past weekends event was rather close to home for us in our remembering.  Help us to focus on the joy of her birth and life and not the fear that was present at the time. 
 
4.  For protection over our children and our marriage.  As we are all doing our best and loving one another through all this, we are seeing some of the stress of everything affecting our home life.  It is impossible to not allow the stress to affect us.  But we are trying hard to remain calm, hopeful, peaceful, loving and gentle with one another.  We are praying that the devil be bound in any further antics he might pull to bring greater stress upon our family that I know he is threatened by. 
 
Thank you all for your support and love and for taking the time to read this.  We love each of you and appreciate each of you. 
 
Much love,
Heather, Aren, Avery, Benjamin, always Payton and our baby girl we are waiting for.  (name is still being discussed!)

While we’re waiting….

Almost 9 years ago… Aren and I found ourselves standing in unknown territory. We had been blessed with a beautiful baby girl, we named Payton. As many of you know with Payton’s birth, came many changes into our lives. We wanted to share Payton’s progress while she was in the NICU and then when she came home. Aren started a website in her honor and it was there that we did our best to update all the wonderful people in our lives praying for her and supporting us. It continued to be a place to share even after she went to be with the Lord and then became a place to share the births and lives of Avery and Benjamin. But we soon found it to be neglected as we were busy with life with our kiddos. It was a time after that, that I started this blog. At first it was created to be a place for me to update family back East on the kids, and then it morphed into a place of sharing my faith in Christ. Then last July we made the decision to homeschool! And well…it was my last post (a testimony to my full plate!!!) I have been so busy this past year... that I’ve not been intentional about posting. I was considering closing it recently, questioning its purpose at this time in my life. Until almost 2 weeks ago…

I am almost 23 weeks pregnant with our fourth child and beyond blessed to be a mom to another gift from God. All has been going great in my pregnancy up until recently. I am a little drained from retelling the details of the story…so I will be as to the point as I am capable. That’s hard for me…being created as an “attention to detail” kind of gal.

Recently, we went into the perinatologist’s (high risk pregnancy) doctor to have our high level ultrasound (u/s) done. We were just checking on baby to see how growth and development was progressing. We went in fully expecting great things. We were stunned to be told that our baby appears to have a partial cerebellum malformation. This means that part of the baby’s cerebellum (part of the brain that aides in motor control…i.e. walking, balance) is not forming as it needs to. We have since had two more doctor appts. , one with our primary OB, and a follow-up perinatologist appt. We were given similar, yet different perspectives from each perinatologist about what their opinions are on our baby’s possible complications. What started out rather grim, has since transformed into a more hopeful place. We still have a long road ahead of us though.

Aside from being told our baby’s complications, one of the most heartbreaking parts of this whole experience was the initial advice given to us by the Dr. to abort our baby. Legally they have to offer that option… whether it is a terminal condition or not. But we were deeply grieved and offended by this advice and made it very clear where we stood. I will say…this did not end easily. Once the point was made and they were asked to NOT address us with this option again, they receded. But it left wounds on our hearts that will forever affect our view on the sanctity of life.

The Dr.s are unsure exactly what has caused this complication for our sweet baby. The last Dr. we met with left us with hope… We are unsure if this is a condition related to a chromosomal or gene condition, or if it is a developmental condition that occurred very early in my pregnancy, or if it is related to an undiagnosed health conditions in me. Basically we will not know until ultimately the baby is born. And we have been given great hope that this is not a terminal condition, and may not be a severe disability causing condition. We may not know how this affects our precious child… until he/she is grown… What it boils down to in our opinions… is this child…like our others, is in God’s loving Hands. Only He knows the story… we are just following Him in it and doing our best to be trusting and obedient along the way.

We are awaiting blood work on me to rule out some possible causes (I’ll explain more later), we are scheduled on May 29 to meet with a Pediatric Neurosurgeon to seek council on his opinion on the u/s findings and what steps to consider taking as our due date approaches (August 16). We are planning (but not scheduled yet) to do a follow-up u/s with the perinatologist team again. Other than that…not much we can do while we wait… medical-wise…but we can PRAY!

We are asking anyone that knows the Lord to please pray for us and the baby. We are asking for and expecting a miracle. We are also preparing our hearts if the miracle doesn’t come in the way we are seeking it to. We are trying our best to trust in the Lord with all our hearts and to not lean on our own understanding. We are trying to submit to him…as He says He will make our path straight. (My words along with Proverbs 3:5-6). As we look ahead… the path doesn’t “feel” very straight, it feels treacherous, and dark. We know that if we choose to see things through our own eyes, that is how it will feel. And that if we choose to receive His gifts of being in control, being Good, loving and Sovereign… than the path has just enough Light upon it that we need to see in which way to go and to rest and not worry. Some moments in the day are easier to do this than others.

We are hearing many lies in our heads, and many potentially scary perspectives from the medical world…but we are also hearing many Truths…and some of those are:

~That God has made all the delicate, inner parts of our baby’s body and that he/she is being knit together in my womb. Psalm 139:13
~That this baby is “Fearfully and Wonderfully Made” Psalm 139:14
~That we can be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him… Psalm 37:7
~ We do not need to fear, for He is with us, we do not need to be dismayed, for He is our God. He will strengthen us, help us and uphold us… (Isaiah 41:10)
~He does not willingly bring affliction or grief to the children of men. Lamentations 3:33
~And we know that in all things God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose for them. (Romans 8:28)

There are so many more truths that are in our thoughts, on our hearts and in our words we speak throughout this time… so while we’re waiting… we are asking that everyone pray. Pray alone and pray together. He says where “two or more come together in my name, I am with them.” (Matthew 18:20) We are told that “whatever we ask in Christ’s name, the Father will do, so that glory will be brought to God.” (John 14:13). I believe very much in the power of prayer. I know He hears our prayers and in my life, I’ve seen tangible evidence of prayers answered. I also know and will say… God does not say yes in all the ways we ask of Him. His ways are not our ways; His will is not always our will. He sees the bigger picture… He sees eternity. We see only the here and now. We are limited by our lens. And even if we pray and our prayers are not answered in the ways we are asking and seeking… we will still stand in saying… God is good, He is Sovereign in His provisions and we can trust Him in all of this. We know He has great plans for us and that doesn’t include plans to harm us or our sweet baby. They are plans to prosper us and to give us hope and a future… no matter what.

Love Heather, Aren, Avery, Benjamin, Baby and always Payton

"Quiet Time"

Daily I struggle with how to wisely use "my" time.  I fight my own desire with setting my own schedule, and not turning to someone wiser, who created time and has my days numbered.  I struggle with discerning how God wants me to use it, who does He want me to encourage or support, what does He want me to accomplish, the list goes on....

I try to pray for wisdom and discernment in how to best use my time and for God to help me to know "my time" is not just my time... but His.

I long for time alone. I rarely dislike being alone. I've always been that way. I am most "still" when I am alone and my soul craves that.

So when I get alone time, I tend to feel an internal struggle with how to use it and how to protect it. Sometimes, I don't want to "share" it and sadly, sometimes that means I neglect to set aside some of that time to spend with the Lord. I want to spend time in His word, growing, learning and drawing closer to Him through that time.

I struggle with just "sitting down" and reading His word.  I know it can be a challenge to do when you’re a mom of little ones. I usually have time in the afternoon when my son is napping and my daughter is in quiet time playing. But I still feel the lure of that perpetual "to-do" list.

While I am not striving for perfection, I do feel I can improve in my being intentional about time reading God's Word... His instructions for my life...His way of being in relationship with me and me with Him.

I am not proud of my struggle, but I recognize it for what it is. Sometimes I have even noticed, that when I spend time reading the Word, I can't get enough of it, and I don't want to stop.  Also, I find myself feeling irritated if I get interrupted while I am spending time with the Lord.  So the pendulum swings the other way.

So where's my balance?

I've prayed a lot about this and part of me feels like God is trying to tell me to do as Christ did.

Mark 1:35 "Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went to a solitary place, where he prayed."

Ideally, I could do this at this point in my life- the kids all sleep through the night. I'd have time to myself with the Lord, then be prepared and armed with the Word of God to start my day as opposed to later in the afternoon where I've already been through most of my day. Then when nap/quiet time rolls around in the afternoon I could use that time to accomplish some of the other things of the day and not allow my time with God to be pushed aside.

I've always been a "Night Owl." So I don't know how this will look for me, but I can't help but feel like this is what He is guiding me to do. It's been on my heart for quite some time. And this is how He speaks to us... to me. He is a gentleman, gently and patiently putting things on our hearts and shaping us to follow His Will.

And the other thing...

Simon and his companions sought out Jesus and perhaps interrupted the Lord's prayer time with the Heavenly Father. But Jesus didn't act selfishly, he didn't get angry and he didn't refuse them and tell them to go away. He simply joined them and went on about his day’s journey and quite literally fought demons.

So now the question is... "Am I prepared to do the same... how about you?"

4th of July Potato Salad

Happy 4th of July!  I thought I would share one of my favorite recipes.  It is the best potato salad ever and one of my favorite side dishes to bring to a BBQ.  So if your heading to a BBQ this weekend and you need a recipe, this one will deliver!  Enjoy and have a great weekend!

Ingredients
• 2 pounds red new potatoes, quartered and cut into 3/4-inch chunks
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1-2 tbsp. apple cider vinegar (add each tbsp. per taste preference)
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced scallions, plus more for garnish
• 4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled, for garnish
Directions
1. In a large pot, cover potatoes with salted water. Bring to a boil; reduce heat. Simmer until potatoes are tender when pierced with the tip of a sharp paring knife, 12 to 15 minutes. Drain well.
2. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together sour cream and mayonnaise, apple cider vinegar; add warm potatoes, and gently fold to combine. Season with salt and pepper. Cover; refrigerate at least 1 hour and up to 1 day.
3. To serve, season salad again with salt and pepper, if needed; fold in scallions. Garnish with bacon and more scallions, if desired.

Just a few side notes:  If you don’t want to bother with frying your bacon, cook it in the microwave, oven or you can buy it already cooked. This recipe was adapted from a Martha Stewart’s recipe; I changed the sour cream and mayo to regular from light and added the apple cider vinegar. I have made it in the past with light mayo and light sour cream… still good but not as rich in flavor. I’ve also made it with half- light sour cream and regular mayo, still great. All depends on your dietary preferences.  Lastly, this recipe makes a small serving, I always double or triple this recipe so there is plenty to share.  It never goes to waste.