Saturday, February 26, 2011

Snow!


Yesterday I was driving in a blizzard and today we wake up to snow on the ground! This hardly ever happens here and when it does, everyone gets so excited!

When I was driving on the freeway, I just couldn't believe how hard it was snowing. It was like I was in Y-town again! Plus, the snow was sticking EVERYWHERE making it interesting to drive in. There was quite a bit of slush building up on the freeway and I thought for sure the mail truck ahead of me was going to slide of the road....thankfully, it didn't.

The sun is coming out now, so we should probably get the kids in it before it all melts away!

Monday, February 21, 2011

Napping Milestone

Today, Caitlin took a nap without a pull up or diaper for the first time! And, she woke up dry!!! Like I said a few posts ago, she'd been waking up dry for a good while, so I picked today to try it out. I almost forgot and mindlessly put her in a pull up, but thankfully Dennis was there to remind me of my plan. We are so proud of her! She got an extra special treat when she woke up....a sour licorice rope.

Colton has really been enjoying his adventure with food. He had carrots with apples today and ate them with gusto! I made 9 jars of baby food today. Along with the carrots w/ apples, I made butternut squash and mango w/ pear. I was also going to make yams, but Colton woke up from his very short nap, so I didn't have time. I have a few jars left in the freezer so it's no biggy.

Alright, it's time for me to dig into yet another Sookie Stackhouse novel!

Caitlin petting her first goat at our zoo.




Sunday, February 20, 2011

Food for Thought

Have you ever seen a particular food item and immediately thought of a person? When I see or think about certain foods, I associate people with that food. It's odd, but hey, it's me we're talking about! So here is some food for thought:

Noodley Doodleies - a.k.a. Ramen Noodles -- I always think of my Nana because my cousins and I ALWAYS had these after school at her house

Squeeze Cheese - another after school Nana food

French Toast - my uncle Ray because it was decided he makes the best

Pancakes - my dad because when I was little, my cousins Amy and Clint, decided he made the best

Brussel Sprouts - my sister LOVES them and would probably eat them every day if she could

Lasagna - my aunt Donna because she makes the best

Mushrooms - my mom because she puts them in everything

Diet Mt. Dew - Nancy because it's her thing

Pulled Pork - Caitlin because it's what I craved when I was pregnant with her

Vinegar - my older brother because he doesn't like anything with vinegar

Tomatoes - my little brother because he can't stand them

Lay's potato chips - my father-in-law because they're his favorite

Strawberries - my nephew Hunter because he LOVES them and eats them even if they are green

Malibu Rum - Dyani because it was the second craziest night next to NYC

Soup - this is a tie...my step-mom because she makes really good soup and my niece Kayla because she will eat it in 100 degree weather

Chocolate Cake - Kelly because she loves it and we always have some form of it when ever we visit

I'm sure I can relate a person to everything I eat, but that post would take forever and we all have things to do today :)

Thursday, February 17, 2011

Two Weeks



When can you say a child is potty trained? Is it when they can go all day using the potty or when they stop needing to use a pull up during their sleep as well? Maybe it's a combination. Either way, I'd say Caitlin is mostly potty trained. Today marks two weeks that Caitlin has been consistently using the potty during the day. And for about a week now, she's been waking up dry from her nap. I am still in awe at how well she's doing and how NOT stressful it has been. It's funny, there are quite a few books on potty training and how to potty train in one day or a weekend, but there is something to be said for taking your time. When I was in college I watched a little girl during her potty training stage. Her parents had read one of those books and used some of the listed strategies. It was the most stressful week watching her....ever! And, it just didn't work. It seemed the whole family, including the little girl, was stressed out by the venture. So after that first week, things slowed WAY down and she eventually went back to diapers. Having this only experience with potty training, I was a bit nervous about how to go about training Caitlin.

We started in the simplest way when Caitlin was almost a year and a half by putting her on the potty before her nightly bath. Dennis and I have had the mentality, when ever she's potty trained, she's potty trained. We never had a specific date we were shooting for, but took things day by day. The hardest part was for me to take the leap to switch her from pull-ups to panties during the day. Once that happened, BAM, she got it within a few days. Then she became more consistent and started telling US that she had to go!

We are so proud of her......and so excited for her! In fact, we ventured out of the house on Tuesday without a diaper or pull-up on! It was a very quick trip, but a HUGE first for us. If she continues to wake up dry from her nap, I may just put her down without a pull-up! And of course, I will keep you all updated on her progress.

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Happy Birthday Aunt Donna

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AUNT DONNA!!!!!! I hope you have a wonderful (and not too wet) day! Although, all the rain will do wonders for your beautiful flowers around your house.

My aunt always has the most beautiful yard. She loves to garden and I have fond memories of her gardening and pruning her gorgeous flowers. I also remember her making the best lasagna I've ever had! I haven't had it in YEARS, but it had thin layers of noodles and lots of cheese. She also introduced me to the deliciousness of butter on saltines as a child! Mmmmm. I wish I had some saltines right now.

Happy birthday Aunt Donna!

Happy Birthday Bill and Jason

Today...okay yesterday, was my cousin Jason's birthday and it was also my little brother's birthday too! My little bro turned a whopping 30 years old!!!!! For him to turn 30, makes me feel even older than I am!

I hope these two had wonderful birthdays!

Saturday, February 12, 2011

Superbowl Weekend

Touchdown! Caitlin and I were a bit under the weather on Superbowl Sunday, but we made the most of it. We layed around the house and I made sliders for dinner. The first touchdown of the game, struck the pose above, which had us laughing quite hysterically. The next day she actually did the same thing when they were replaying the first TD of the game....uuber funny. Anyway, we danced our way through the half time performance of the Black Eyed Peas (as we are all big fans) and Colton found himself in a box sometime around the end of the game.....although, I think Dennis may have had something to do with that. Colton seemed to enjoy the box because he certainly wasn't making any effort or complaining to get out.

Most every morning I find Caitlin covering up Colton with her blanket. This is a HUGE deal because she LOVES this blanket (I can't even pretend to use it). On this particular morning, during tummy time, Caitlin decided to join her brother....wild hair and all.

And while I type Colton is happily snoozing on the couch beside me and Dennis and Caitlin are napping in her room. And in about 17 minutes, I'm going to have to put an end to their nap party.

Oh, and tonights dinner.....PULLED PORK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I can't wait!!!!!!!!!

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Colton 5 Months


Again, this is a bit late. I finally managed to upload photos on the main computer and the laptop. It's been a while! Colton is growing like a weed! He's really trying to crawl, but can't quite figure it out. When his knees go up, his face goes into the carpet and when he straightens his arms, his little knees go flat. It's quite funny to watch. Caitlin still loves him a LOT and I'm surprised he doesn't have more to say about this since most of her loving involves squishing him in some sort of way.....which I can't blame her because he's so squishable!


Colton's first bite of food....squash! He didn't necessarily like the squash, but he liked the eating part. We have since tried applesauce, pears, peas, and peaches. He eats the ENTIRE jar without hesitation and acts like he really wants more! So far, I'm keeping him to one jar for a while.

The other day I walked in the living room to find Caitlin reading Colton a story. You couldn't understand a word she was saying, but she was definitely telling him a story and turning the pages as well. Super adorable.

Oh, and last night Caitlin and I did a puzzle together and she matched all the colors up without me helping....at all!!! Dennis and I couldn't believe it! We're so proud! Oh, and potty training has been going exceptionally well. The only time we've had to change a diaper in the last 5 days is after she wakes up. And yesterday, I got her a special magazine to read while on the potty! It's a National Geographic for little kids! It's about 6" by 6" and has thicker pages than a normal magazine. The photos are beautiful and it has fun rhyming and sound games! I'm definitely going to have to get a subscription!

Friday, February 4, 2011

Curried Away

Hahaha! But not for Colton. It turns out the curry I had on our anniversary did not sit well with Colton. He woke up screaming several times and I couldn't calm him down. Thankfully, Dennis came in the first time he woke up and calmed him down pretty quickly. And last night, Colton was much better...only waking up to nurse. So I guess no more curry for me....at least Indian curry. I also may need to watch my spicy food intake.

And now I don't feel good. I think I caught what the kids had. I'm tired, my head hurts...in fact, my whole face hurts. I have a slight sore throat and my skin hurts, which makes me think that I may be developing a fever.....I so can't wait. Thank goodness I did all my grocery shopping this morning before I felt too bad.

Oh, I must go. It sounds like one of the children is awake and I can't quite tell which one.

TGIF!!!!

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Happy Anniversary

Today, Dennis and I celebrate our 9 year wedding anniversary! We've been together for over 14 years and it still seems like we just met! We celebrated tonight by going to one of our recent favorite restaurants. I had a salad with apples, candied walnuts, and an apple vinegrette for an appetizer and Dennis had hot wings that were spiced with cinnamon! Then I had a creamy chicken curry with bananas, coconut, raisins, cranberries, and coconut rice. It was good, but it had a very strong curry flavor. I realized that I prefer Thai curry rather than Indian curry because it's sweeter and not as strong. Dennis had crab flautas which he liked, but probably wouldn't order again. For dessert, Dennis had a deconstructed apple pie and I had wonderfully dense mini Kahlua mint cheesecakes! They were wonderful!

And where were the children during our wonderful meal you ask? Why they were with my amazing friend Nancy. She came over after teaching her 4/5th graders all day, to watch our lively pair! Caitlin had a blast and was still riled up when it came time to go to bed....although that could have been her father wrestling with her once he got home. But after 3 attempts, she's finally asleep.

Oh, and another great thing about our anniversary.....it always falls on Groundhog's Day!!!! I just love that! And it looks like spring will be coming early this year!