Something New

So I have definitely been in a culinary rut lately. I love to eat and try new things and this extends to my cooking. So I have been craving Thai beef salad so I found a recipe on line and went for it. Often times my ideas and my "new things" end up a disaster. This time was a success. It was so yummy I can't stop thinking about it. I really wish that I would have doubled the recipe so I could have some today. Then since I was on a roll I tried a chocolate covered cookie dough truffle. It turned out really good too. But there are a few things that I would like to do differently. So all in all it was a success and I am happy to report that I have a couple of new items to add to my repertoire.

Its been a while

Well it has been a while since I have posted anything. We have been busy growing and playing with our friends. We went to the Zoo with the family this last monday. He was not too interested in the animals and wanted nothing to do with the stroller. So My mom and Christopher took turns carrying him all over. It looks like he is about the size of a infant gorilla.

Here is the whole group. It was not too hot, but because it was the 24th of July (actually it was the 25th but everyone here celebrated it on Monday) There were a lot of people. I find that in my old age I don't like to be around large crowds. It never used to bother me but now I can hardly stand it.
A couple of weeks ago Jackson and I went to a birthday party at the local aquarium. He did not care at all. He screamed for most of the time and wanted mr to carry him. The only problem was that I still had the stroller and a huge diaper bag. So this was not that much fun. I guess the lesson I learned is that if I go to places like this bring back up that can either hold him or push the stroller. Again there was a huge crowd and it was hard to get around. It seems like Jackson has a dislike for large crowds as well.
We have been having a few play dates as well. Here Jackson and Aiden were checking out the dogs.
Jackson and Mya playing at the park. What a face. Other than that we have just been hanging out at home and practicing our walking. He is scooting around the edge of the couch and everything. Now he just needs to master not standing on the top of his feet. I am sure his first steps are in the near future. Also he now has two teeth.

Fathers Day

Happy Fathers Day to all of the fathers out there. I hope my dad knows that I love him and I am happy to have him be a part of our lives.

Also I would be remiss to mention my grandpa on fathers day. He has been such an amazing support throughout my life and I appreciate all that he has done for me so much.

Then to the newest father in my life Mark. Thank you so much for being an incredible father and husband. Jackson and I are so lucky to have you. I hope you know how much we appreciate all that you do for us.

Lastly to my father-in-law Craig. Thanks for being such a great Dad for Mark to learn from. You have been very kind and loving to me and I appreciate all that you do so much. Jackson loves you so much and loves hanging out with you.

So Happy Fathers Day to all of my Fathers and happy fathers day to all of the other ones too.

Baby Shower

My sister-in-law Kellie is expecting a little girl. Which by the way after 4 nephews and one son I am out of my mind with excitement about. Tarah and I were super excited to throw her a shower. We have been thinking about it for months and yesterday was finally the day and I think it turned out really great. So the birth of this concept started way back at my own shower when my friend gave me a cute bouquet made out of baby stuff.

So you notice on the mantle I totally ripped off her idea, but only because it was brilliant. Thanks Shan! But there are flowers and butterflies made out of washcloths and flowers made out of binky's and teething rings. They are all attached to baby spoons and forks. At oneof my showers we cut and pasted pictures of Mark and I together to see what Jackson would look like. I loved having the photos around so I thought it would be cool to display baby photos of the parents. Anyway from this little bouquet I thought it would be a fun challange to make as many of the decorations something she could use as possible. Also I loved the idea of a garden theme for little girls with all of the flowers and butterflies. So this is what we came up with.

Tarah made tons of these cute hairbows and headbands. This little girl will never be without a bow to match every occasion. We also made the diaper cake with butterflies and flower bow on the top. It was decorated with a rattle and a couple of binky clips.
Ever since I found out I was pregnant with Jackson I have kept a journal. It is so neat to look back and see what was going on. Also for my showers I had people write stuff down for a time capsule, So this journal is kind of a combination of both. A place for others to leave Daphne a message, and also a place where Kellie can write to her and tell her about what is happening and what she is thinking and feeling.
Tarah had the idea to really cement the garden theme by making grass and these super cute flowers. Also we found a cute "D" plaque for a good deal so we had to get it.
For the utensils we wrapped extra diapers around a cup and tied a string around it. Then we put another flower clip on the outside. We baked tons of cookies in the shapes of butterflies and flowers. And Tarah made chocolate and red velvet cupcakes. They were delicious.
So as part of the garden theme I thought a clothes line would be cute. Plus it was easy as Tarah and I have been buying clothes for the baby for months now. Tarah made the poms and we thought it would work well. Carol made all of the food which was excellent. We had mixed nuts and m&ms, fruit with three different kinds of dip, broccoli and cauliflower salad, cheese and turkey with croissants. Everything turned out perfect and went off without a hitch. It was fun planning it and working with my sister cuz. I am so excited to meet my new little niece. I have the sneaking suspicion that she is going to spoiled.

On the move!

My boy is crawling. It was so cute, this past sunday he was doing his normal elephant walk and rocking back and forth. We all commented that he would be on his way as soon as he could figure out how to coordinate his arms with his knees. We ate our dinner then headed down to the family room in the basement. As soon as we put him down on the floor he started crawling. Something clicked over dinner and know he is fully mobile. It is so cute. He really thinks that he is cool now that he can go where he wants to.

Fearless?

So thinking back to my self last year I could say that I was pretty much fearless. I really was not afraid of anything and now I feel like I am afraid of everything. My nights are filled with anxiety dreams that make it hard for me to get a good nights rest. My days are filled with anxiety thoughts. I get so upset about all of the natural disasters that have been popping up. I almost can't even watch the news because it is filled with all of these terrible stories of bad people doing horrible things to children, or that everything we eat is killing us or endangering our babies. I think because it is my job to protect Jackson because he is so vulnerable I am feeling overwhelmed. Since I got pregnant I have felt completely out of control of my own fate. I feel helpless to the whims of the universe and it really sucks. I need help trying to figure out a way to either gain some power back or to be OK with the fact that i really have no control over other people or natural disasters. This being a mom thing is really hard and because I finally have something to lose it makes it that much harder. Does anyone else feel like this? Or am I just crazy.(Please don't answer that :)

I Got a job!

Yay I got a job. I am really excited and I think it has the potential to be perfect for my little family. For a while at least I will be home with Mr Man. The job is an alternating weekend shift, So Jackson will stay home with Mark when I am at work. There will be times when I will cover for people during the week so I think it will be easier to find a baby sitter that way. Jackson has been pretty good lately, he still has his moments, but for the most part he has been happy. We started giving him Rice Cereal a little bit early, but he was totally ready to start eating. He would watch us when we eat and he would open his mouth when you would put a spoon up to it. He seems to really enjoy his foods. He is sleeping alright, he still will wake up once a night or so. Some nights we get lucky and he sleeps all the way until 6:00 am. But so far we can't figure out how to guarantee this to happen every night.