Bath Time!

It's bathtime with baby James! James absolutely LOVES bathtime with daddy. Daddy puts him in his special seat and fills the tub up high. When the water is high enough to reach, James gets to splash splash splash all around to his hearts content. Laughs and giggles fill the bathroom with delight. It fills my heart with joy and puts a smile on my face to hear James and my husband having so much fun. "Splash splash, James. Splash splash," says my hubby. "What should we wash next? Let's wash baby James' arms. Ready?. . ." Isn't that the sweetest? I just had to share some photos I took. How could someone resist that melt-your-heart grin!

Cruisin'

My son, James, cruised for the first time while we were at Small Group with our church friends. As I watched him slowly and clumsily lift his feet up and down, my little boy started to grow up so fast. I felt a bit anxious and overwhelmed as these past nine months flashed in my mind. I'm not ready for this to happen. Soon enough he'll be cruising fast, then standing alone, and then, heaven forbid, walking! Yikes! It's all seeming to go by so incredibly quick. I wish life had a pause or slow down button. I guess this means that I need to continue to cherish this little human being that God created, take lots of pictures, and love and hug and kiss him as much as possible.

60th Anniversary Celebration

Over the weekend, my family went up to Mechanicsburg, PA to surprise my grandparents with a 60th wedding anniversary celebration. It was a HUGE success, and I wanted to share some pictures of how we decorated and such.

This is the sign that I made so the guests would know where to go.



Here is a picture of the room with all the decorations finished. I was the decorating coordinator, which was so much fun. I really enjoy doing stuff like this. My dad said I should do it for a living or work in a flower shop part time. We'll see.



This is the table we set up especially for my grandparents. We thought it would be nice for them to have a table all their own. Instead of having balloons at their table, I created a pretty bouquet of roses from the supermarket.



This is a picture of the gifts/guestbook table. The picture is a picture of my grandparents on their wedding day. That thick book is the 72 page scrapbook my mom and I created from all the photos that we put together and that guests sent to us. We asked them to send any photos, memories, or memorabilia so we could create a special scrapbook for them. It was ALOT of fun. They are enjoying looking and reading through it.



There's Grammy and Gramps thanking all of the 100 guests who came to celebrate.




These are some photos taken at their home with their great-grandson, whom they so dearly love.






Hope you enjoyed looking at these photos. Let me know if you want to hire me for your next event or celebration. Ha! :)

My son's personality is starting to really shine these days.

He is starting to cut his two top teeth so he's been a very cranky baby. He blessed us recently by not getting to sleep until 3:30am one lovely Friday night. I think I'm still catching up on sleep from that. Ever since he started to sleep through the night at 3 months, I've been a little spoiled with more sleep than I could ever dream of. Ha ha.

Anyway, the teething is causing him to slobber, chew, and drool on anything and everything. So, I bought some biter biscuits to see if he would enjoy them. And he did. I usually give one to him while I'm preparing his solid food for the morning or afternoon. I set it on his tray so he can practice picking it up (I think he might be right handed). He puts it in his mouth and gnaws on it, but instead of ingesting the gummed-up, soft, pastie biscuit, he spits it out and lets the sticky slobber run down his chin. Makes for a very messy boy afterwards. If a chunk breaks off into his mouth, he scrunches up his nose, squints his eyes, sticks out his tongue and shakes his head. Quite a scene! If I try to take it from him, he cries out in protest, tries to pull it away from me and chomps on it like a little piranha. After a while, he looses interest in the biscuit, and our dog, who loves to beg at baby's feet, gets a nice (nasty?) treat.

So, while I'm wetting a paper towel to clean his little hands, he decides that he wants to be little He Man. My son sits in a booster seat that has a tray with a snap-in removable dishwasher safe tray. He has figured out how to rip the tray off, which has become a habit of his while I'm feeding him. He'll grab the front with both hands, purse his lips, squint his eyes, and yank it off. He ends up hitting the back of his head on the back rest, but it never phases him. I put the tray back and start to feed him his pureed bananas. He reaches forward again and I tell him no! and he objects with a brief cry (ooo, you're such a mean mommy). It's cute though because he also avoids eye contact with me because he knows he's doing something he shouldn't.

I can only imagine what he will be like in a few months. Crawling and into everything! Aah, the joy of parenting.

I absolutely love it!

To All Prune Hands

Have I got a product for you! I'm so excited about this product, it's given me a new enthusiasm for washing dishes! Uh, maybe not, but you've got to check out the new soap from Dawn. It's Dawn Direct Foam. This stuff is AMAZING! I literally cleaned 4 large pots and pans, several large mixing bowls, utensils, and measuring cups with one pump of this incredible soap. Well, maybe two pumps, but it only amounts to like 1 tablespoon total of foam.

Anyways. . .

It's definitely something that every prune-handed person must go and purchase. Right now. You can do countless loads of dishes (approx. 250) with one 13 1/2 ounce bottle. It's totally environmentally friendly because you're using less water, which is only needed for rinsing. Heck, I could be their new spokesperson!

Okay, so all of you who spend time scrubbing away at crusted over dishes. . .GET THEE TO THE STORE AND BUY SOME DAWN DIRECT FOAM. You'll be thanking me later! I gua-ran-tee it.

Milk Raspberry

My son has perfected his ability to blow raspberries. Instead of fussing in his crib and crying to alert me that he's awake, he blows raspberries and says "ah bwah bwah bwah bwaaaah. . ." It's really quite funny and adorable I must say.

Except when he blows mama milk raspberries. I was able to stop him biting me while he nursed, but now he has gotten into this messy habit. After he's done nursing, he'll de-latch himself and, while he still has a mouthful of milk, baptize me with a wonderful splatter of milk raspberries all over the place. It splatters all around his mouth and trickles down the side of his cheek, and of course, gets all over me.

Now, I KNOW fellow moms can definitely relate to this. Anyone have any suggestions on how to get him to stop?

Christmas 2006

Here are some pictures I promised to post. Hope you enjoy them!

This picture was taken at my mom's on Christmas Eve. What a happy and beautiful family!



His Great Grandma and Great Grandpa got him this toy, Baby Tad. He really likes this one because it lights up and sings nursery rhyme songs.



James' Gram, my mom, got him this great puppet. He wasn't sure what to make of it at first. He was wondering how mommy's voice was moving Lamb Chop's mouth.



Doesn't he look so cute? A good friend of mine let me borrow this outfit.



Okay, so I forgot to rotate it, but just tilt your head to the left. Now, doesn't he look like a baby model?



Hope you liked my pictures.

One Sock, Two Teeth

As I sit here surfing the web, my son is sitting in his seat and keeping himself occupied with . . .his sock. I gave him a stuffed animal, but he decided his sock was much more tastier. I have to admit he looks pretty cute. His two bottom teeth are coming in, which makes for a cranky baby in the AM (Thank the Lord for Infant Tylenol Drops), and he's wanting to chew EVERYTHING! I guess socks taste pretty good, and so do baby toes, mommy's knuckle, daddy's knuckle, and numerous other objects. He's starting to have interest in things that he shouldn't reach for. I guess it's time to start baby proofing everything. Baby gates will definitly be going up very soon. Then comes the plug protectors. And then we have to move everything that is less than 26 inches high up so he can't reach them. Man, babies are so much work! Whew! But it is definitly rewarding. NEVER a dull moment. Except when I have to change poopy daipers. Note to self: do not buy Apricots with Mixed Fruit again because poopy is VERY stinky. Hazerdous waste is more like it! Now I know what goslyn means when being able to smell the poop through their clothes. HA!

Until next time. . .

Tuesday Tip

Okay, so it's been super way too long since I have posted something.

Just a quick Tuesday tip that I tried tonight:

I recently received a nice and super warm LLBean zip fleece shirt for Christmas. After wearing it for the second time, I accidentally got candle wax drippings on it. Oops!

And then I thought, "Oh no, it's ruined!" But actually I was able to fix it and my shirt is as good as new with no wax.

Here's what I did. I cut a piece of paper bag about the size of a sheet of computer paper and placed it on the wax stain. Then I took my trusty iron and ironed over it and the wax transferred to the paper without burning my new shirt. Cool, huh?

Hopefully my next post will be this week and I'll show some photos of Christmas. James had a blast, and so did mommy and daddy!

Oh, How Much You've Grown!

I recently dug out a new toy that I received at one of my baby showers. It's one of those Activity Stations. This one is pretty unique in that it has a detachable seat that spins and rotates around the activity center. When Well, baby James, aka Flying Baby, just LOVES it! I put him in it for the first time, and he just went nuts. The coolest thing is that he has figured out how to walk around it while in the seat, so little by little he pushes with his feeble little legs and actually makes a full rotation. He's such a smart little dude.

It's just so amazing how much he's grown in 6 short months. From being so small and needing an IV in the NICU


to now where he's able to hold his head up and stand on mommy's lap while holding onto my hands.


I am so amazingly blessed to be his mommy. I just love watching him grow, and he gets to be more and more fun everyday. God really did think this out, even to the most minute detail. I mean, what will He show me next. Thank goodness babies don't come out of the womb knowing everything. How boring would that be!

Give Thanks

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I hope that yours was a blessed and wonderful one. Our little family had a lovely time with my parents and grandparents. Here is a beautiful picture that a friend took of our family. There's my dad and mom in the back on the left, myself, hubby, and James on the right, and then my grandparents (my mom's parents) in the front. Isn't that a great picture? Everyone was smiling and looking at the camera at the same time, even baby James too!

A Loss For Words

Ever since I have become a mom, my memory has been less than perfect. I think that after delivering my son the doctors must have taken part of my brain. Along with losing my mind, I seem to not have as great of a vocabulary as I once did. Or at least I can't say what I mean with the right words. Just like this weekend after attending our Saturday church service.

We were chatting with our lovely friends, Tom and Jen, about the upcoming concert at our church to benefit the Young Life Capernum Project. One of my favorite Christian artists, Sara Groves, is going to be sharing her pianorific talents with us. Since we will be attending the church service that is before the concert, I thought we might have to leave our seats and come back in for the ushers to accept our tickets. So, I thoughtfully asked my friend, Jen, "will we have to evacuate the auditorium?" She and my husband looked at me with puzzled faces, "evacuate the auditorium?!?"

Puzzled by my own words, I tried to correct myself, but no appropriate word could hop into my brain and out my mouth. I was completely at a loss for words. My brain had just totally shut down.

Does this happen to every new mother? If it does, God should put a warning on the little baby's forehead that says, "Will Cause Permanent Brain Damage".

The Five Factor Personality Test

I found this test while reading goslyn's blog. So, I thought I'd take the test and it came out pretty accurate. Check it out!

Your Five Factor Personality Profile

Extroversion: You have low extroversion. You are quiet and reserved in most social situations. A low key, laid back lifestyle is important to you. You tend to bond slowly, over time, with one or two people. Conscientiousness: You have medium conscientiousness. You're generally good at balancing work and play. When you need to buckle down, you can usually get tasks done. But you've been known to goof off when you know you can get away with it. Agreeableness: You have high agreeableness. You are easy to get along with, and you value harmony highly. Helpful and generous, you are willing to compromise with almost anyone. You give people the benefit of the doubt and don't mind giving someone a second chance. Neuroticism: You have medium neuroticism. You're generally cool and collected, but sometimes you do panic. Little worries or problems can consume you, draining your energy. Your life is pretty smooth, but there's a few emotional bumps you'd like to get rid of. Openness to experience: Your openness to new experiences is low. You're a pretty conservative person, and you favor what's socially acceptable. You think that change for novelty's sake is a very bad idea. While some may see this as boring, many see you as dependable and wise.

The Five Factor Personality Test

"Let's Start Over, Honey"

Well, it's been a long time since I've posted something on my blog. I guess I'm not as much of a writer as I thought. Or perhaps I just don't have as much time as I thought I did to blog as much as I thought I wanted. Or maybe I haven't experienced anything that I think is worth sharing with anyone who cares to read this. But, alas I have something!

My son was born in June, so that makes him a little over 5 months old now. The first few weeks we were home with him I had this strange and frantic feeling that I wouldn't have anything to do staying home with him.

So, in my new mom syndrome state of mind, I decided that I was going to fix up our 1st floor half bath. I made a list: new light fixture, new faucet, paint, molding, and pretty vinyl sticky-back floor tile. I was all gung-ho, and I had decided that I was going to do it all by myself and that I would have so much time on my hands because having a new baby to take care of doesn't take up that much time at all.

And, boy, was I wrong! Just ask how long those supplies sat in our hallway outside of the bathroom! Well, my husband and I got the energy to finally do everything that I had planned. And hubby would probably emphasize that it was all my plan. So, we painted and put of the fixtures and. . .ROAD BLOCK!

Supermommy: "Hmmm, hubby, how are we going to lay down the pretty vinyl tile I bought that's been sitting in the hallway for weeks? It's going to be difficult to figure out how to make those difficult cuts for it to fit around the toilet and the door frame molding"

Hubby: "Umm, I'm not really sure, Supermommy. Surely our useful Biology and Sociology degrees can help us. I mean, isn't this why we went to college?. . ."

So, the tiles were moved to a new home in the basement to sit. . . for 5 months.

Until last weekend.

I got the gumption (I just love that word!) to get out the handy dandy pry bar and start to chip away the old nasty laminate floor. I was chipping and peeling, chipping and peeling, and then when I got to the toilet I notice some black stuff. Hmm, I thought, this looks like the stuff on Extreme Home Makeover that makes people very sick. Maybe we could apply for the show and I wouldn't have to do this darn home improvement stuff myself.

Uhh. . .maybe not.

But that black stufff looked alot like mold. So I pulled out some bleach and attacked the mold with a scrub brush and it all came out. Ah, the power of bleach. But then I realized that it has probably spread under the adjacent tiles. So there I went, chipping and peeling, chipping and peeling. . . . chipping and peeling, chipping and peeling. . .man this is hard work! Maybe I should wait for hubby to help when he gets home from work.

So, I waited until he came home. We had an intellectual conversation about what we should do. Much like the one above. . .

Supermommy: "Look, hubby, at all the hard work I've done while baby is asleep."

Hubby: "Well I guess I know what we're doing this weekend."

Supermommy: "What, praytell, do you mean my darling hubby? I've decided that we are going to finally finish this bathroom this weekend. Isn't it going to be SO MUCH FUN?"

Well we finally finished laying the tile, after spending about 14 hours chipping up the rest of the tile, removing the old toilet, making several trips to Home Depot to buy supplies including a new toilet that needed to be installed because we were having company over the following day. And after several bouts of spousal bickering and saying "let's start over, honey" we were done!

I don't know about you, but for us, home improvement sure brings out the worst in us. We end up spending a third of the time fighting about how we should do things and who does what etc. etc. It would be a perfect world if we could just call a contractor and have them do it for free.

But what's the fun in that?!

Well. . .back to my mothering duties. Until next time. . .

I can't get no, ba da ba. . .motivation!

I'm at 14 pounds and counting for my weight loss since I joined Weight Watchers after having my son.

Anyone here ever gotten to the point where they just don't feel like it anymore? Yup! That's where I am. I'm getting a little tired of counting everything that I eat and not being able to eat as much chocolate, brownies, or tortilla chips that I want. I mean I could, but then there's the sometimes dreaded weigh-in every week. And I'll kick myself if I gain anything because I know what I did wrong. Choices choices choices.

I just need some motivation! Gosh darn it! I know that I'm doing well, but sometimes I just want to throw in the hat.

Am I the only one?

The Chewy

Here is the recipe for my favorite chocolate chip cookie, which I want to share with all who read my blog.

The Chewy (courtesy Alton Brown)

2 sticks unsalted butter
2 1/4 c. bread flour
1 t. kosher salt
1 t. baking soda
1/4 c. sugar
1 1/4 c. brown sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
2 T. milk
1 1/2 t. vanilla extract
2 c. semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat your oven to 375.
Melt the butter in a sauce pan over low heat. Mix together the flour, salt, and baking soda. Pour melted butter in a mixer and add the sugars. Mix at medium speed until blended. Add egg, yolk, milk, and vanilla until well combined. Slowly add the flour mixture until thoroughly combined. Stir in chocolate chips. Chill dough for a bit, and then scoop out your dough with a #20 scooper onto your cookie sheets and bake for 14 mins. These make big, chewy cookies, so make sure you do not put too many cookies on the sheet (6 max.). ENJOY!

Sunset

I was at CBS (Community Bible Study) this past Tuesday, and before we broke up into our Core groups we heard a woman speak about her life before she met Jesus. She spoke about how much her life has changed since she met Him. She was raped at a young age and married at the ripe old age of 16. The pain from being raped started a pattern of affairs during her marriage, but then she met Jesus.

One thing that she spoke about really stuck in my head and I wanted to share it with you. She said, and I think she was quoting an old song, "I stand amazed by the power of Jesus. How He could love me, a sinner, unclean."

Thinking about this phrase -I wish I knew the song title- I thought back to a recent picture that I had taken of a sunset. It reminded me that I hadn't seen one in a long time. Ever since my son was born my daily focus has been on him, but that's not a bad thing. Heaven's no. It's just that I realized that I hadn't taken time to breath, time to listen to the wind, time to smell the start of Fall, time to look up into this huge sky and stand amazed by how much Jesus loves us that He paints a beautiful sunset at the end of each day (good or bad) to remind us of His power and love.

When I looked at that sunset I truly stood amazed. I think I probably was there for quite some time because I was able to notice all the beautiful and bright colors that God has created. Radiant pink and brilliant blue. And how He probably just took His powerful and gentle hand and brushed it against the sky to make the whispy clouds. He probably got a little chuckle because it's so easy for Him. God makes a different one everyday. He just wants us to take time to notice. Notice the splendor. Notice the beauty. Notice when the last time you just stood there in awe by the power of Jesus. How He could love you, a sinner, unclean.

Happy 80th Birthday, Grandpa!

On Monday we're off to Delaware, OH to surprise Flying Baby's great-grandpa for his 80th birthday. This will be my son's first long roadtrip. I'm kind of worried because usually what hour happens during car rides is he falls asleep. While I know that this is good in one way, a 6 hour nap might not be such a good idea. Hopefully things will work out alright that when we stop to nurse he'll be awake enough where it won't mess up his schedule. At least he normally takes a big nap during part of the time that we are traveling.

Anyway, back to where we are going. Delaware, OH is home of the Delaware County Fair and home of the Little Brown Jug, a famous harness horse race. My grandfather (my son's great-grandpa) has NEVER missed a Jug since 1947, and it started in 1946.

He's a pretty amazing man. Grandpa grew up on a cattle farm in Delaware County, Ohio. When he was a little older (in his 20s), Grandpa's father took an interest in Standard Bred harness horse racing and became a trainer and driver. I guess this is the time when Grandpa started to really develop a love for this great sport and hasn't stopped since. Grandpa worked for the Sunshine Biscuit Company from 1956-1962. While on the job, he fell off a latter and seriously injured his back. While reading a Harness Horse Magazine, which he was an avid reader of, he saw and answered a job ad for the magazine and soon became the Associate Editor of Harness Horse Magazine from 1962-?. He stopped working for the magazine sometime in the 1960s and worked for Hempt Farms, a horse breeding farm, in the advertising and public relations area. In 1976 he became the Deputy Executive Secretary for the Horse Racing Commission of Pennsylvania, and he was also a judge. He retired from the Commission in 1991 as a well respected man of harness horse racing, and he is still a well known and respected man of this sport today.

Grandpa, even though I know you won't be reading this post I want you to know that I am a proud granddaughter. I wish I was an author or writer who could document your amazing life in a book. My short paragraph doesn't do justice to your life and legacy. I hope that someday someone will help you write a book on your life. I would be the first one to buy a copy and I'll definitely want your autograph!

HAPPY 80th BIRTHDAY, GRANDPA! I can't wait to see your face when we surprise you next week!

Guinea Pig

Well I finally got my hair cut. It had only been 5 months. I went to Hair Cuttery on Monday afternoon with Flying Baby while he was fast asleep in his carrier. When you go to Hair Cuttery usually you do not have the same person cut your hair unless you request them. It had been 5 months so I figured it didn't really matter to me.

I had this nice young lady with pink and blonde hair cut my beautiful locks. The usual layering and blowdrying straight. Unfortunately, when I got home I noticed that one side was at least a half an inch longer than the other. Oh dear! No wonder it felt funny on my neck. Well I thought I could live with it, but it was really bugging me plus my hubby noticed. So I called Hair Cuttery back and told them of my hair dilemma, and they said I could come back and they'll fix it for free. YAY!

So I went back with Flying Baby in tow (Oh the things we do for beauty) and had another lady cut my hair. Thank goodness pink and blonde lady wasn't there. This new lady was really nice, and she had 30 years experience. She also told me that pink and blonde was new at this. So pretty much I was one of her innocent guinea pigs sent to the chopping block. Oh the poor souls who had to experience her hair cutting "expertise". Never again!

So, the 30 years lady fixed my hair and now everything is just splendid! It's amazing how much better my hair looks now that someone actually did it right. Thank you Hair Cuttery!

Hopefully it won't be so long before my next hair cut.

Until next time. . .

Sugar, How I Love Thee, Let Me Count The Ways

Tomorrow, my husband, son, and I are going up to my grandparents to celebrate my dad's 65th birthday. Of course, me being the nice person that I am, offered to bake a birthday cake for my dad. He likes Key Lime Pie right now, so I found a cake recipe that has a butter layer cake with sweet lime curd filling and buttercream frosting. I jazzed the buttercream up and put lime juice and lime zest in it. Well, the cake is all put together and setting up in the fridge.

You might be wondering why I started this post with "sugar, how I love thee, let me count the ways". Let's just say that during the whole process of making the cake some of it landed right into my mouth. Now I'm am currently trying to loose my pre-baby weight, and so far I've lost 15 pounds of it. But who can resist the luscious texture and taste of yummy butter cake batter and buttercream frosting right off the spatula.

Yes, I have a weakness for sweets. If they were in my house 24/7 I would consume them daily. How come things that taste so incredibly are so incredibly bad for you (if you eat them in massive amounts)?

After I put the crumb coat on, I popped a piece of gum in my mouth and chewed on it while I frosted the cake. Funny thing is I still was in the habit of taking a swipe of the creamy frosting with my finger and sticking it in my mouth. Some how minty chewing gum and lime frosting just don't mix.

Fed up with myself and feeling a little guilty, I quickly stuck the mixing bowl in the sink and filled it with soapy water. Ha! That ought to teach me! Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately, he he), I must confront my addiction tomorrow at my dad's birthday party.

But it will be alright. I can definitely handle it. I guess wanting to loose 5o more pounds is a bit of a motivator because I want to get back into my size 8 jeans I wore in high school. Slowly but surely the pounds are coming off thanks to Weight Watchers, Curves, and walking my dog, Anakin, and son, the incredible Flying Baby.

I feel like a new supermommy!

-mommaladybug