Mommy Moments

I {Heart} Faces - Fix-it Friday

2009-12-04T19:01:00.002-06:00

I stumbled across this wonderful website today and decided to work with the photo for this week. Lots of fun. I did a lot of different tweaking, but I forgot to write down what I was doing! *blush* Anyway, here's the before and my after

Happy Thanksgiving

2009-11-26T13:13:00.002-06:00

It is Thanksgiving, and I am thankful for much. I hope you all have a wonderful holiday with family and friends.

Since there's just the 2 1/2 of us, I'm not cooking a large traditional feast. Instead, on my menu for this afternoon is Marinated Flank Steak, Homemade Mashed Potatoes, Roasted Green Beans, Deviled Eggs, and Pear Crisp with Homemade Vanilla Bean Ice Cream. I'll post everything this evening or tomorrow morning (depending on how gorged I am tonight!).

Yummy Pasta

2009-11-09T12:03:00.003-06:00

This is based on a recipe I found in Everyday by Rachel Ray a few months ago, but I changed it by adding the sauce - which totally makes the dish! I quite literally licked my plate (and the spoon, and the serving bowl :) ) clean. I'm totally looking forward to leftovers for lunch!

1 lb penne pasta
1 head cauliflower, cored and cut into 1-inch pieces
EVOO
salt & freshly ground pepper
garlic powder and paprika (or other spices to taste)
8 T butter (the real stuff)
2 tsp rubbed sage
1 1/2 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan
3/4 cup freshly grated Romano

Preheat oven to 400.

Lay the cauliflower on a baking sheet. Drizzle with EVOO and toss to coat. Lay the florets back out all nice and neat so they are touching but not overlapping.

Lightly salt and pepper. Sprinkle on garlic powder and about 2/3 as much paprika as garlic powder. (Take it easy on the garlic powder and paprika, they're just there for emphasis in this dish.)

Bake for 15-20 minutes until browned, but not burned.

Meanwhile, in a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the pasta according to package directions until al dente. Drain.

While the pasta is cooking, in a small heavy saucepan, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Cook, without stirring, until the butter is golden-brown, about 6 minutes. (I don't have a heavy saucepan, so I had to cheat and stir the butter once or twice to keep it from burning around the edges. This, of course, disrupted the cooking process and made me cook it much longer.) Remove from heat and, after a minute, add the heavy cream and sage. Return to heat and simmer over medium-low heat for about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and add the cheeses. (I'm not entirely certain on the amount of cheese. I used two large palmfuls of cheese, which I am estimating is 1 1/2 cup total. The sauce will still be a little runny, not overly cheesy/creamy. I also used more Romano than Parmesan because I prefer it's more subdued flavor. Remember that cooking, unlike baking, is not a precise science. There's always room for personal preference.) Do not stir the cheeses in, but rather let them sit for a bit. Stir it all together after a few minutes and toss with the hot, drained pasta. (I always add my pasta slowly to the sauce - I don't want too much pasta and not enough sauce!) Enjoy!

Fettuccine Alfredo, Roasted Cauliflower, and Pumpkin Muffins

2009-10-30T16:52:00.002-05:00

That's what's on the menu for tonight. After a few weeks of being off the wagon, I'm jumping back on. It's a process. So anyway, check back later tonight for recipes!

Alright, here are the recipes.

Fettuccine Alfredo - Adapted slightly from this recipe by Giada De Laurentiis

18 ounces fresh fettuccine
2 1/2 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
12 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 cups grated Parmesan
1 cup grated Romano
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 6 minutes. Drain.

Stir 2 cups of the cream and the lemon juice in a heavy large skillet to blend. Add the butter and cook over medium heat just until the butter melts, stirring occasionally, about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat.

Add the pasta and toss. Add the remaining 1/2 cup of cream, and cheeses to the cream sauce in the skillet. Add the salt and pepper. Toss the pasta mixture over low heat until the sauce thickens slightly, about 1 minute.

Roasted Cauliflower

This is very similar to my roasted asparagus recipe.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees
Rinse cauliflower and remove cut into small pieces.

Lay the cauliflower on a baking sheet. Drizzle with EVOO and toss to coat. Lay the florets back out all nice and neat so they are touching but not overlapping.

Lightly salt and pepper. Sprinkle on garlic powder and about 2/3 as much paprika as garlic powder.

Bake for 15-20 minutes until crisp-tender.

Pumpkin Muffins - from The Pioneer Woman

Muffin Ingredients:
1 cup All-purpose Flour
½ cups Sugar
2 teaspoons Baking Powder
1-½ teaspoon Cinnamon
¼ teaspoons Ground Ginger
½ teaspoons Nutmeg
½ teaspoons Salt
4 Tablespoons Butter - Cut Into Pieces
1 cup (heaping) Pumpkin Puree
½ cups Evaporated Milk
1 whole Egg
1-½ teaspoon Vanilla
½ cups Golden Raisins (optional!)

Topping
2 Tablespoons Sugar
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
¼ teaspoons Nutmeg

Frosting:
¼ cups Softened Butter
4 ounces, weight Cream Cheese
½ pounds Powdered Sugar
½ teaspoons Vanilla

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Generously grease 12 muffin tins.

Sift flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt. Cut in butter with two knives or a pastry blender until it is fully incorporated. In a separate bowl, mix together pumpkin, evaporated milk, egg, and vanilla. Pour pumpkin mixture into the flour mixture. Add raisins. Fold gently until mixture is just combined.

Pour into a greased muffin pan—batter hardly ever fills all twelve unless you keep it down to 1/2 full. Sprinkle with remaining cinnamon-sugar-nutmeg mixture over the top of each unbaked muffin.

Bake for 25 minutes. Allow to cool in pan for 15 minutes, then remove and allow to cool. Ice with cream cheese frosting.

To make the frosting, mix all ingredients on high until soft and whipped. Spread onto completely cooled muffins, or place into a large pastry bag with a large star tip and go crazy! Store in the fridge, as icing will soften at room temperature.

My note: I love these! I ate all 12 by myself! (*sheepish grin*) I left out the raisins. I meant to make the frosting (because it sounds so yummy!) but I simply devoured them too quickly to bother.

Flank Steak & Buttercream Icing

2009-10-06T21:38:00.002-05:00

And before you ask, no, not together. We invited a friend of Eli's over tonight for dinner. I tried a new recipe and finally perfected another. The menu consisted of Marinated Flank Steak, Roasted Asparagus, Mashed Potatoes, Chocolate Cake, and Tres Leches Cake. It was all very yummy. The steak and potatoes were new recipes to me. The potatoes were very good. Seriously, how can you mess up mashed potatoes? The steak was different. I think I liked it. I would certainly tweek the marinade recipe a bit next time. But we all agreed it tasted pretty good. I had the hardest time finding a grocery store in my area that carries flank steak. I actually had to drive 20 minutes north for it. But considering it was just over $10 and enough steak to feed three adults and a child, I'd say the drive was worth the deal. I homemade everything but the chocolate cake. My view on it is, when Betty Crocker has the perfect Chocolate Devil's Food cake from a box, why bother baking one from scratch? I have constantly fought with my buttercream icing over the years. It is at times too thick, too sugary, too...something. Anyway, tonight it was divine! Eli made the comment that it tasted like ice cream. The difference this time was the amount of sugar I used and the whipping cream I drizzled in at the end on a complete whim. The icing was a bit thin and I didn't want to add more sugar. I knew that adding the cream while the mixer was on such a high speed would make the cream thicken the icing. Anyway, here are the recipes.

Marinated Flank Steak (This was a hodge-podge of recipes I found online for flank steak)
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup evoo
1/4 cup honey
2T sesame oil
1 1/2T Worcestershire sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced
2T ginger, minced

Mix together and add trimmed flank steak, coating well on both sides. Cover and let marinate 4+ hours.

When ready to grill, remove the steak from the fridge and let sit while you heat a grill pan over high heat. You want the pan to be really hot when you lay the steak on it. When the pan is hot enough, place the steak on the pan and leave for 1 1/2 - 2 minutes. Turn 45 degrees (for grill marks) and let cook another 1 1/2 - 2 minutes. Flip and repeat on other side. It should cook 5-8 minutes total for medium rare. Be sure to turn on your exhaust fan (and open a door or window if you have an old fan like I do). Remove from heat, cover loosely with foil and let rest 10 minutes. Slice on an angle (for thicker slices) and against the grain to serve.

While cooking steak, pour marinade through a sieve and bring to boil in a small sauce pan over high heat. Let boil about 10 minutes until it reduces. Serve with steak as a dipping sauce.

(On a personal note, I added a lot more soy sauce and Worcestershire. The sesame oil is a very strong flavor. I think next time I will halve the amount of sesame oil and honey and then adjust for taste.)

Mashed Potatoes

2 lbs potatoes
2 sticks butter
1/4 cup sour cream

Peel and dice potatoes. Put in a pot and cover with enough water to come 1 inch above potatoes. Heat over high heat and boil until fork-tender. You want them nice and soft. Drain and place in mixing bowl. Add 2 sticks butter (I sliced it into pads) and sour cream. Mix well and beat on high speed. I let them do laps while I worked on other things, stirring them occasionally. The longer the potatoes do laps, the fluffier and creamier they are.

Chocolate Buttercream Icing
2 sticks butter, room temp or melted
5-8 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup cocoa powder
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup milk
heavy whipping cream

Add butter, 4 cups sugar, cocoa, vanilla, and milk to a large mixing bowl. Mix together on low speed first to avoid a cloud of powdered sugar, then cream on med-high speed. Add more powdered sugar by half-cupfuls until slightly thinner than desired consistency. (Mine was just thin enough to be a bit runny had I tried to ice with it.) Drizzle in a little heavy whipping cream (sorry, I didn't measure - it was probably about 1-2 Tablespoons) and cream until desired consistency is reached. Add more cream if necessary.

All-in-all a very good dinner. I think Mike will come back. :)
(Sorry for any typos...I'm too tired to proof.)

Chicken Scallopine and Blueberry Baked French Toast

2009-09-15T16:24:00.002-05:00

Update on the Tres Leches cake: I decided not to make the icing. I was just too lazy to pull the mixer back out. And I'm rather glad I didn't. I've been slicing strawberries and laying them on top of the cake, and it's the perfect blend of sweet and tart. I love it! I've eaten half a cake all by myself! (Not that this is a bad thing by any means.) B and I even had cake and strawberries for breakfast yesterday. I figure it has all the same ingredients as french toast, give or take, and is therefore more nutritious than cereal. At least that's what I told myself as I was eating the cake. :)

So, last night I made Chicken Scallopine. No side, though. At least I made dinner. It was a relative success. I find myself wondering if my sauce isn't quite right because I'm substituting chicken broth for white wine. This is the second time I've made it and I find that it's just too runny. I'll have to experiment further to find the right mix of sauce ingredients. But it was well received. Eli liked the chicken. I never imagined he'd go anywhere near the scallopine part of the dish. Brayden tore up some chicken. And he ate the capers. Just the capers. Well, and the mushrooms. Although most of the mushrooms were consumed uncooked as I sliced them. I had to chase him off before he ate them all! I think next time I'll saute the mushrooms in butter before I add the other sauce ingredients. I love the taste that results when mushrooms and butter marry! I think it would add significantly to the dish. My favorite part of cooking this is pounding the chicken flat. You should have seen the look Eli gave me when he came into the kitchen to see what was going on! He thought I had lost my mind as he watched me go at the chicken with a hammer! (I don't have a meat mallet or a rolling pin, so I use the broad side of a hammer and it works great.)

I also prepped Blueberry Baked French Toast last night and cooked it this morning. I loved it, as usual. I've eaten half of it since this morning. Brayden liked it well enough, but I think I'll let him have plain ole cereal tomorrow. He just isn't liking these strange breakfast dishes as much, and as a result, he's getting cranky from low blood sugar and we have a bad morning. Anyway, love the French Toast. It's a bit unusual to make, but yummy! I love that the tartness of the blueberries keeps it from being overly sweet. Add some maple syrup and I'm in heaven. (BTW, I use about 3 times as many blueberries as the recipe calls for, which is 3 small boxes.)

Tonight is Savory Chicken Breasts. And B and I are making Forgotten Cookies for his teachers. You'll certainly want to come back for the cookie recipe! A family favorite for sure! (And I mean the ENTIRE family.)

Here are the recipes for the Chicken Scallopine and the French Toast:

PW’s Chicken Scallopine

1 pound linguine
6 boneless, skinless, trimmed chicken breasts
Flour
Salt & Pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 tablespoons butter
12 ounces white mushrooms, sliced thin
1 cup dry white wine
Chicken broth (optional)
1 lemon
1/2 cup heavy cream (can use half & half)
1 heaping tablespoon capers
chopped fresh Italian parsley

Cook pasta according to package directions.
Flatten chicken breasts to uniform thickness. Salt and pepper both sides, then dredge in flour.
Heat butter and olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Fry chicken breasts until golden brown. Remove to a plate and set aside.
Throw mushrooms into the pan and stir. Immediately pour in wine, then squeeze juice of 1/2 to 1 lemon. Stir to deglaze the pan, then cook vigorously for 1 minute, until sauce reduces.
Pour in cream and stir, then add capers and parsley and stir. Turn off heat. Stir and add salt and pepper to taste. Don’t undersalt!
Place pasta and chicken on a platter and top with every last drop of sauce. Generously sprinkle Parmesan Cheese over the top.

Blueberry Baked French Toast

INGREDIENTS

1 Family Size Bag Stacy’s Pita Chips - Simply Naked

7 large eggs
2 cups whole milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons vanilla extract

6 oz fresh blueberries (optional)

1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar (use a little more)
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter

DIRECTIONS

Grease 9 x 13 inch baking pan with butter. Pour in bag of pita chips and arrange evenly.
In a bowl mix together eggs, milk, cream, sugar, and vanilla.
Pour egg mixture over pita chips. Cover pan tightly with foil and place in refrigerator overnight, or at least six hours.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove pan from refrigerator. Sprinkle blueberries over the top.

Mix together flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Slice butter and add to bowl, then use pastry cutter to cut the butter into the flour mixture.

Sprinkle flour mixture over the blueberries and make sure it’s evenly distributed.

Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until bubbly and golden brown. Chips on top should be crispy and crunchy.

Remove from oven and cut into squares. Drizzle with blueberry or maple syrup and serve warm.

Tres Leches Cake

2009-09-13T22:48:00.002-05:00

So, I went into the kitchen to start on the Chicken Scallopine for dinner and realized that I didn't have any chicken broth. So, instead, I did Macaroni Grill Creamy Basil Pasta out of a box instead. But I did make a Tres Leches Cake. PW posted the recipe a couple days ago and I was dying to try it. It's a sponge cake soaked with a three-milk mixture. I've never made a cake from scratch, so this was interesting. I wish I had realized before I measured out the flour, baking soda, and salt that it is essentially self-rising flour - because I actually have self-rising flour in my pantry. (BTW, you can turn all-purpose flour into self-rising flour by adding 1 1/2 tsp baking soda and 1/4 tsp salt per 1 cup flour. Just in case you're ever baking and find you need to know.) So, as of right now the cake is baked, cooled, and soaked. Brayden loved helping pierce the cake before I soaked it. In fact, he started to get a little overzealous with the stabbing and I had to reign him in lest he destroy the cake. He then proceeded to scoop himself up a big chunk and eat it, whereby he declared it "yummy, tasty"! I haven't made the icing yet. But I did try a bite and it is rather yummy. Almost a little too sweet for me, though. I'm not a big sweet fiend. I think that with the icing (which is essentially whipped heavy cream) and some strawberry slices on top, the sweetness will be more manageable. I'll let you know how it works out. In the mean time, here's the recipe for Tres Leches cake as per PW.

Tres Leches Cake

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

5 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/3 cup milk

1 can evaporated milk
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1/4 cup heavy cream

1 pint heavy cream, for whipping
3 tablespoons sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Spray 9 x 13 inch pan liberally until coated.
Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl.
Separate eggs.
Beat egg yolks with 3/4 cup sugar on high speed until yolks are pale yellow. Stir in milk and vanilla.
Pour egg yolk mixture over flour mixture and stir very gently until combined.
Beat egg whites on high speed until soft peaks form. With mixer on, pour in 1/4 cup sugar and beat until egg whites are stiff but not dry.
Fold egg white mixture into other mixture very gently until just combined.
Pour into prepared pan and spread to even out surface.
Bake for 35 to 45 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.
Turn cake out onto a rimmed platter and allow to cool.

Combine condensed milk, evaporated milk, and 1/2 cup heavy cream in a small pitcher.
When cake is cool, pierce the surface with a fork several times.
Slowly drizzle all but about 1 cup of the milk mixture—try to get as much around the edges of the cake as you can.
Allow the cake to absorb the milk mixture for 30 minutes.
Whip 1 pint heavy cream with 3 tablespoons of sugar until thick and spreadable.
Spread over the surface of the cake. Decorate cake with whole or chopped maraschino cherries. Cut into squares and serve.

Dinner Menu

2009-09-13T10:39:00.002-05:00

Here's my menu for the rest of the week. We get paid on Thursdays, so my menus will run from Friday to Thursday.

Sunday - Chicken Scallopine with Steamed Broccoli
Monday - Savory Chicken Breasts with Roasted Cauliflower
Tuesday - Chicken Wiki with Steamed Broccoli
Wednesday - Crockpot Creamy Italian Chicken with Roasted Cauliflower
Thursday - Mac Grill Basil Pasta with whatever veggie I find at the store today

Somewhere in there I'm making Baked Blueberry French Toast and a Tres Leches cake.

Roasted Asparagus

2009-09-12T22:16:00.002-05:00

We had a lazy sort of night tonight. Brayden woke up from his nap hungry and we had a friend over to play, so the only thing I cooked was asparagus. I love roasted asparagus. I made a whole large bundle and ate it all myself tonight! (In my defense, no-one else in the house likes it.)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees
Rinse asparagus and remove bottoms. Many people will tell you to cut off the bottom just above the tough part...but I always want to ask - where exactly is that?! I tried that once or twice and always ended up with a few bites of the tough, bitter end that I missed. Instead, break the end off by hand. The asparagus will naturally bend and snap off at just the right place. (OMG! The Bend & Snap! Works every time! - Kudos to any who know where that comes from.)

Lay the asparagus in a line on a baking sheet. Drizzle with EVOO and toss to coat. Lay them back out all nice and neat so they are touching but not overlapping. Add spices. (To me, spices are more of a generalization. I don't usually measure - and certainly not for asparagus. Besides, it's really influenced by your personal preference.)

Lightly salt and pepper. Add a generous amount of garlic powder. (Don't ward off any vampires, but this is your main spice.) Add about 2/3 as much paprika as garlic powder. Add just a touch of chili powder. Be careful, this stuff is strong. You just want to give it a slight kick.

Bake for 15-20 minutes - a tad longer if they are really thick stalks.

That's it. Totally yummy asparagus!

Friday Night for Dinner

2009-09-11T19:18:00.002-05:00

So, I've decided to start blogging tonight.

For dinner I made Macaroni & Cheese and Roasted Green Beans. I've never cooked fresh green beans, so it was a new experience. I just sort of made it us as I went. The Macaroni & Cheese is based off a recipe The Pioneer Woman posted a few months ago. But she calls for a couple spices I didn't want in my Mac & Cheese. As a Mac & Cheese aficionado (ask my mother what food is responsible for the bulk of my existence growing up), I want to taste noodles and creamy cheese. I don't want strange flavors taking over and making me wonder why it tastes funny. Don't get me wrong, I like me some good spices. but Mac & Cheese shouldn't have a tang IMHO. So anyway, here's how you make homemade Mac & Cheese.

First off, you need a heavy bottom pot (the sauce needs to heat evenly without any hot spots to cause it to burn) and a whisk. (Note to self: I need to buy a small balloon whisk. My large one just ain't cuttin' it.)

Start by boiling water for the pasta and cooking it according to the package directions. While the pasta is cooking, continue with making the sauce. There will be a few minutes lull later where you can drain the pasta.

Before you begin making the sauce, be sure to measure everything out and have it nearby. You don't want to get to the point where you're ready to pour in the milk and then have to measure it out - the roux will burn. (Ask me how I know this.)

On an aside, a roux is a thickening mixture made from flour and fat that is the basis for many sauces and gravies.

So, you need to melt 1/4 cup butter in your pot and whisk in 1/4 cup flour. Cook over medium-low heat for five minutes, whisking constantly. Make sure to whisk every part of the roux evenly or it WILL burn. Just before it is ready, you will notice that the consistency begins to thin and it starts to take on a slightly golden color. (I said slightly. If it starts to turn from golden to brown, it is burning! Ask me how I know this.)

Pour in 2 1/2 cups milk and whisk until smooth. (Don't pour it in slowly or it will burn. Wanna hazard a guess how I know this?) Cook for five minutes until very thick. Reduce heat to low.

Grab the bowl that has 1 egg, beaten, in it. Take 1/4 cup of the sauce and slowly pour it into the beaten egg, whisking constantly to avoid cooking the egg. What you are doing is tempering the egg. If we dumped the egg straight into the sauce, the heat would cook the egg on contact. By slowly pouring a little of the sauce into the egg first, we are gradually bringing the temperature of the egg up. Now pour the egg mixture slowly into the sauce, whisking constantly. Stir the sauce until smooth.

Dump in the 1 lb. cheddar cheese you have shredded and sitting nearby and stir to melt completely. Add a bit of salt to taste. PW says not to under-salt, but having ruined a batch by over-salting, I'd rather have mine lacking in that department than not.

Now add in your cooked and drained macaroni. Don't just dump it all in. Add it in batches and stir in between additions. You may or may not need all the macaroni, and it's better to have more cheese than macaroni than not enough.

(For those who are wondering how I know all these faux pas: Yes, I have made this at least a dozen times. I mentioned before that I am a Macaroni & Cheese aficionado. I should probably amend that to say that I am a Mac-&-Cheese-ophile.)

For the green beans, I cooked them much like I do asparagus.

I preheated my oven to 400 degrees. I snapped off each green bean at the tips and spread them out on a baking sheet. I drizzled them with enough EVOO to coat, and tossed them to coat well. I sprinkled a pinch of salt and pepper and two generous pinches of sugar. Yes, sugar. It complimented the natural sweetness of the green beans well. Then I sprinkled them with paprika. I wanted a spice that would add impact without overpowering the sugar. In hindsight, I wish I had used more paprika. I sprinkled them semi-liberally, using appx. 1/2 tsp for two to three servings of green beans. Next time I will fully coat them on one side with the paprika - using 1 - 2 tsp.

Then I stuck them in the oven. I gave them about 25 minutes, but they came out a little more tender than I would have liked. 18-20 minutes would have been just right.

It was a good dinner. Brayden didn't eat the mac & cheese - predictably. He is a mac & cheese snob. He only eats mac & cheese that comes out of a blue box - and then only if it's mixed with peas. I don't ask. But me, I'm quite stuffed from eating too much. It was yummy.

My New Cooking Resolve

2009-09-11T16:33:00.002-05:00

I am in desperate need of cooking at home more. It's killing our budget all the eating out. I always have the best of intentions to cook, but between not having a good daily routine and then forgetting dinner needs to be made until the last minute, I end up ordering out instead of cooking the food that's sitting in my fridge. So, to help keep me accountable, I'm taking a cue from The Pioneer Woman and This Week for Dinner and I'm going to make a weekly menu and share it here. And then I'm going to let you all know how new recipes go - for better or worse! I really enjoy cooking, and I find tons of wonderful recipes. So I'm going to share. I'll get my game plan together for the rest of the week and start posting tomorrow. Feel free to follow along!

House

2009-08-29T23:23:00.009-05:00

For those of you *ahem* who have been asking (repeatedly) to see photos of the house. Here's the grand tour.

So, you walk in the front door and to the left is the den, which I posted pictures of, like, 8 months ago. And in front/to the right is the living room.

You then head through the door near the foot of the stairs and find yourself in the dining room.

You continue through the dining room to the left, and on that big blank wall (which is now covered in Brayden's artwork) is the doorway into the kitchen. (Please excuse the mound of garbage waiting to go out to the road.)

Through the little door adjacent to the one connected to the dining room is the pantry and stairway down to the basement (which I am not going to show you).

Through the door on the other side of the baker's rack is the half bath. I love this little bathroom.

So, leaving the first floor, you climb the stairs. Directly ahead at the top of the stairs is the spare bedroom which is now my knitting room/photography studio. Sorry, no pictures yet. Without turning, to the right is the upstairs bathroom.

Assuming you were still standing at the top of the stairs, kitty corner behind you to the left (if that made any sense) is the door to the master bedroom. (Again, sorry no pictures yet.) And adjacent to it on the left is the door to Brayden's room. (I'll get a photo of his new bed soon.)

And in his closet is this adorable little play room.

Brayden Turns 3!!!

2009-08-25T12:08:00.010-05:00

I can't believe my baby is three! I refuse to believe it. In fact, it hasn't really sunk in yet. We had a quiet birthday yesterday for him. He doesn't really have any friends yet, so we opted to forgo a party. Instead, yesterday evening we all went to Valley Worlds of Fun. Brayden had a blast. We went down the big Fun Slide (like the one at the fair) together as a family. He played miniature golf with Daddy - which he loved! He was emulating his Daddy. If Daddy was teeing off, Brayden plopped his ball down and teed (sp?) off. If Daddy was putting, he picked his ball up and went over to putt. It was cute. Daddy and Brayden got in the bumper boats and got soaking wet! The boats have a water gun on them and there were some rowdy kids in the water. In fact, one little boy was bullying my baby - he had that water gun two feet from my child and had the gun pointed straight at his head while Brayden squirmed and fussed. I just about jumped the fence and snapped at the child. Eli later told me there wasn't anything he could do about it. Seriously?! I told Eli he was 26 years old and that child was 10. You stand up for your children. Anyway... Brayden was upset that he couldn't climb the rock wall, but he didn't weigh enough. But Brayden and Daddy did go up in the free fall ride. They pick you up and drop you about 8 times. Brayden was a little anxious in the air, but he seemed to enjoy it. Then we went inside to the arcade and indoor play area. Brayden loves playing Skee Ball and he racked up some tickets. We also played Daddy in Air Hockey. Momma kicked Daddy's butt once Brayden stopped playing! Then we all climbed in the blow-up obstacle course. Brayden really wanted to ride the bumper cars, but he was too short. After we left, we came home and had Monkey Cake that Mama worked all day on and opened a few little presents. His big present was his new bed. I was fortunate we had a bed skirt and comforter Eli's Mom had given us a while back. Then last night he got a box of paints, which he was thrilled about, a set of Kid Kinex - Furry Friends, and a set of Play Doh with several neat cutters and presses. Here's photos from the celebration. I know there's a lot, but I wanted you to feel like you were here!

Brayden's Monkey Cake!

Every time Eli would hit the ball and it didn't get near the hole, Brayden would pick it up for him so he could put it closer to the hole! "Here Daddy, I got your ball!"

Brayden thought he needed to put his ball right next to the hole so he could hit it in. Here he is placing Daddy's ball for him.

And hitting Daddy's ball in.

Yay! I hit the ball in! He would cheer himself each time he sunk the ball.

Daddy trying to show Brayden how to properly hit the ball.

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The free fall. Daddy wanted me to go on it with Brayden, but I told him that if he stayed on the ground, I would require him to take pictures. He told me he'd rather go up!

Brayden driving with Snoopy!

"Happy Birthday to you!"

He actually blew all three candles out in one breath all by himself! We had to relight the candles because he wanted to do it again.

*Gasp* Colors! Paints!

Kitty Cat!

Trying to figure out how the box opens.

He was very excited about the play doh!

All in all, it was a nice day. He seemed to have a lot of fun. He was actually in a pretty good mood all day. He finished up his evening with a Skype with his Pa Campbell. Brayden was showing him all his new toys and sat to chat for a bit. I was surprised he sat for the Skype as long as he did. He even told Pa Campbell "I lub you" and "bye bye".

The Aviary

2009-08-02T14:56:00.010-05:00

I decided to take Brayden up to Pittsburgh to the Aviary one day a couple weeks ago. We had a ton of fun. Pittsburgh has a whole complex of educational places like this including a Children's Museum, a Conservatory, and a Zoo/Aquarium. It was a lovely Mommy/Baby day out. Here's some highlights. Unfortunately, I lost a lot of photos due to a too-slow shutter speed. (Silly me had my camera on aperture preferred with a wide open aperture!)

These little windows looked into the penguin enclosure. As you will see, this was Brayden's favorite part of the aviary!

This bird had caught a mouse! Later you'll see one of the mice family that had moved into a large flower pot in this enclosure.

These are Victorian Crown pigeons. They are the largest pigeons in the world! They were very cool.

These are Lories. They have encounters with the Lories a couple times a day. I didn't have any cash on me to feed them nectar, but it was neat to get up close to them nonetheless. I got one to perch on my finger, but Brayden was slightly less than excited by their close proximity.

The aforementioned mouse. He was quite adorable.

As part of an educational encounter in one of the enclosures, the guy had a volunteer hold a worm in the air and the bird swooped down and took it. In the next photo you'll see where the female was chirping like a chick and the male flew over and fed her the worm.

Brayden loved this sculpture! He kept saying "dinosaur!"

He really did love these windows.

There were glass domes in the penguin enclosure where you could stand up in them and your head would be in the middle of the penguin land. This little guy was right next to us!

He found a friend in the penguin area. They ran around together for half an hour! It was totally cute.

These tunnels led under the penguin enclosure and to the underwater windows.

Shooting through the large pane of glass to Brayden playing in one of the windows in the tunnel.

He had so much fun! This will definitely be an exhibit we will go back to. Eli wants to see it, too!

Happy Father's Day

2009-06-21T18:51:00.002-05:00

I know I'm not on much anymore. I'm just spending so much time enjoying Bradyen and Eli and our life that I'm not getting on to write about it. In fact, I've taken to not even photographing much of it. I find that when I have a camera in my hand I feel like I'm missing out on the moment and the fun. Besides, there's all of maybe 5 people who read this thing and I talk to you all and update you all the time anyway. But this is about Father's Day.

My sister-in-law made a post in honor of today and it got me to thinking about the fathers in my life. My own father isn't here any more, and I truly wish I could say that I wish he was. But the sad truth is that I don't. I have few happy memories of my dad. The ones I do have are pleasant, to be sure, but I don't feel like his presence is missing in my heart. And for that I will always mourn.

But I do have a great step-dad. Clint has been part of my life for roughly twelve years now. Even though he and Mom have never gotten married, I will always think of him as my step-father. He is such a good man. We were never really close as I was growing up like some parents and children, but I do love him and he has always been there. I know he has always supported me and been proud of me, and that has made me feel loved and secure. I love that he loves us kids like we are his own and I love how much love I see in him for my mother. I also love seeing him with Brayden. Brayden adores his Paw Paw. He has always emulated whatever is was Clint was doing when we were visiting - whether it was painting the living room or fixing the car. I love him as if he were my own father and am glad he is in my life.

I also have who may possibly be the best father-in-law ever. I adore Eli's dad. He is such a good, kind man. I feel like in him I have found the father I always wished I had. He is so giving and has treated me far better than I may have deserved at times. It is because of him that I have found something in my life that I feel is mine. He didn't have to buy me a camera and teach me how to use it, but he did and I love him for that. I love the help and advice he gives and a single word of praise from him warms my very soul. I hate that we don't get to visit often, and when we do I don't get to spend much time around him. But I always love the few minutes I get and soak it in. I love him like he is my father by blood, not by marriage.

Of course the most important father in my life is the father of my son. I love Eli with every fiber of my being. He is an amazing, loving, Godly man and I still maintain that marrying him was the best decision I have ever made. I love to see him with Brayden. I love how much Brayden loves his Daddy. I love those moments when Brayden wants Daddy and not me. To see Eli pick Brayden up in his arms and to see the look on Brayden's face as he lays his head on Daddy's shoulder and pats on him...it's a moment that could warm my heart on the darkest and coldest of days. Eli is such an incredible man and I can't wait to have many more babies for him to father.

I have three great men in my life and I thank God every day for each of them. Happy Father's Day.

New Wardrobe!!!

2009-05-08T19:32:00.006-05:00

My most favorite clothing store, New York & Company, is having a buy one, get one 50% off sale. I realized that if I'm going to start handing out business cards to people, I need to look a bit more adult and professional. And I'm tired of only having three things to wear! So I went shopping! I got 9 new tops and a necklace. Then today I took them all to a girl in my knitting group who is a seamstress to have them altered so they fit properly. A bit more costly than I had anticipated all told, but I won't need new tops for the rest of the season. And they look great! Now I just need a couple pairs of nice pants, one or two skirts, and a couple pairs of shoes and I'm all set! Oh, and maybe some accessories. Anyway, here's what I bought. Please excuse the bad fashion show pictures. Eli isn't the best photographer and I'm not the most ideal subject. So we compensated by having some fun with it!

While I was taking photos of the clothes laid out, Brayden came over and looked up at me standing on my chair and said 'Cheese!'. So adorable! Here's a couple shots of him cheesing it up.

2009-05-03T11:20:00.002-05:00

One of my favorite authors, Elizabeth Pantley, is having a give-away in honor of Mother's Day. I have her books The No-Cry Sleep Solution and The No-Cry Sleep Solution for Toddlers and Preschoolers. They are fantastic resources for dealing with sleep issues by attacking the root of the problem and creating calming routines rather than struggling to simply deal with sleep resistance.

"Our children bring us incredible joy. Yet, there are times that they can bring out the anger in us. It is helpful to identify the things that provoke your anger so you can make positive changes in your household." ~Elizabeth Pantley from "The No-Cry Discipline Solution"

I find myself struggling with this a lot lately. I inherited my short temper from my mother. (Love you, Mom!) It makes it difficult to have calm and presence-of-mind in stressful situations where Brayden is pressing all the right buttons. I can't recall ever giving my mother problems, but I've watched her for years struggling with Brandon. I see that she has trouble with her anger when he pushes her buttons - which he does often. But here lately I'm encouraging her to try to push through her anger and try a different tactic to deal with him. Now if only Elizabeth would write this book geared toward teenagers!

I really should update

2009-03-24T14:35:00.003-05:00

I keep thinking I'll do it later when I have time to play catchup and post a bunch of photos, but I never do. So here I am, checking in. Much has been happening around here. (As opposed to almost nothing happening.) Most notably, Brayden is picking up new words and saying new things at a rather rapid pace considering he's spent the last entire year with a vocabulary of a dozen words - less if you only count the ones he actually uses with any frequency. Anyway, he's picked up a handful just in the last week or two. He's even stringing two words together - mainly 'help me' or 'help please'. It's nice to know he has some manners! Here's a list of his words and phrases:

Go
Stop
Ball
Weeee
Ga Boom (we say this when going down the stairs on our butt to make it seem more exciting)
Up
Down
Don't (as in 'no! don't!')
Boo (he says it with me when we get to that part in "If You Give A Moose A Muffin")
Jump (complete with jumping)
Woah (not the Blossom-Joey kind of woah)
Uh Oh
Oh No
Vroom (yes, this is technically a sound effect)
Roar (this, too)
Rock and Roll (said as we head out the door)
You Rock (complete with hand sign)
Ah Ha! (said with magnifying glass to eye)
Hold On (just added to his vocab today)
Let Go (also added today)
More (he learned this last night)
Tickle Tickle
Yeah
No
Choo-Choo
Chugga-Chugga
Help Me
Please
Momma (yay!)
Daddy
Socks (his most recent obsession - we take them on and off all day.)
Hello
Bye

That's like 30+ words!

In addition to all this, he has started 'helping' me read at naptime and bedtime. He is remembering the words to his books and will supply the ones he remembers at the appropriate times. Last night we were reading the Moose A Muffin book and he said boo, paints, soap, dry, and blackberries. I am amazed that he is memorizing his books as we read them. He is also obsessed with The True Story of the Three Little Pigs. In fact, I read it twice a day for so long that I finally had to hide it because I got so tired of reading it. (It's just too long sometimes.) He's still looking for it under his other books. (I know, I know. I hear you saying mean Momma. Don't think I don't.)

Also, (I know, the mind reels) he is responding to his shows on Noggin like Dora and Kai Lan. He says yes or no when prompted with a question, and repeats the Chinese phrases on Kai Lan. He has picked up mannerisms (like the Ah Ha! and crossing his arms and harrumphing to make his stance known - which is totally cute).

He loves to dance with Mommy. If there's music, he asks me to pick him up and he holds on tight while we dance together. Even if it's just to music on a commercial.

He likes to turn the lights on as we head upstairs each night for bed. Last night they were all already on and he was very offended.

He's growing up so fast now. I bought another potty seat so we could have one in each bathroom and some cool-alert pull-ups. I figure now that he's learning new words, it might be time to try potty-training. We're gonna start this weekend and see how he takes to it. He likes the potty and really likes to flush it, so maybe he'll catch on. And if it doesn't take, we'll put it away for another day.

Alright, I have lots to go do, but I'll check back in in a day or two with some totally cute pictures and stories.

Surprise! What a sweetie!

2009-02-13T09:29:00.002-06:00

I have the best husband! Wednesday, he kept Brayden for three hours while I went up to knitting group. And then he kept Brayden last night while I went to my other knitting group. He even made dinner while I was gone. But what was really sweet was what he did after that. I came home complaining about how tired I was. I really didn't think I would make it until Brayden's bedtime. So Eli told me to just go to bed! I was floored that he offered. It was the most romantic thing! (It's sad that as you age your idea of romantic changes so much.:)) Well, I set a timer so Eli wouldn't let him stay up too late and laid out his PJs and then I went to bed! I was very excited.

So, I know it's been a while. I have several updates and lots of pictures, but I'm so busy with these photos I haven't had time to sort it all out and make a post. I will soon.

The Moments I Treasure

2009-01-19T21:31:00.003-06:00

Erin tagged me and two other moms and asked us to post the last funny thing our kids did or said.

The other evening, Brayden and I were sitting in his room playing. I was laying on the floor near his bed watching him flit around the room. Little man had pulled the blanket off his bed earlier and he came over and laid it on top of me. Then he made me get his pillow from where he had thrown it behind his bed. I laid back down and made me lift my head so he could put the pillow under it, then he pushed my head back down onto it and covered me back up. He decided I needed Teddy, so he tucked Teddy in with me, too. Then he started pulling at me. So I sat up and he climbed into my arms babbling and trying to get me to do something. I finally realized he wanted me to pick him up so he could turn out the light. After I did, he of course made me lay back down and he covered me back up. After which he grabbed the door knob, shut the door, and left me to go to sleep. He is too sweet! I love his little monkey guts.

Tag

2009-01-11T20:34:00.001-06:00

After racking my brain for things to fill out my list of things about me, I have decided that 50 is plenty. My brain hurts and I'm not that interesting of a person to try and come up with 50 more...though I'm sure I could given the time. Anyway, here is my list. I am hereby tagging Michelle, Erin, and Tracy. You have to post your lists of 50 Things About You and pass the tag on. Good luck! And have fun!

50 Things About Me...26-50

2009-01-06T22:43:00.005-06:00

26. I am terrified of snakes. And I mean TERRIFIED! If I'm reading a book that has a picture of a snake, I won't touch the picture. (Used to paralyze me in school when I flipped a page in science and realized I had touched the picture!)

27. I hate wearing shoes in the house. I'll never understand people who can keep their shoes on.

28. I can't sleep with socks on.

29. I count stairs. I can tells you the exact number of steps in all the places I frequent. And in what order they are grouped.

30. I hate the beach. It's not really the beach itself but the sand. If it were grass all the way up to the water, I might spend a lot more time there.

31. I want to go skydiving.

32. I want to tour Europe. I want to see the Louvre, Pompeii, the Vatican, the Sistine Chapel...*sigh*

33. I can wiggle one ear at a time.

34. I am still afraid of the imaginary things that live under my bed.

35. I don't like being down in the basement at night if Eli's not home.

36. I hate sodas.

37. I prefer the soft light of lamps to the harsh light of overheads.

38. My favorite flowers are Sweet Peas.

39. I hate scary movies.

40. My favorite band is Dave Matthews Band.

41. I love listening to Classical music in the car.

42. I pop my knuckles...but ONLY the ones at the base of my middle fingers.

43. I cannot draw a circle.

44. I can spell pretty much anything.

45. I know the difference between farther and further and know when to use each.

46. I tend to be a bit of a snob about things of which I have a passionate opinion, like TVs in bedrooms and breastfeeding and hard-soled shoes and baby carriers and lots of other things. Of course, I never force my opinion on anyone.

47. I don't paint my fingernails. Not because I don't like to. I really really do. I love pretty fingernails. But nail polish REFUSES to stick to my fingernails. Seriously. I wash my hands once and it starts coming off.

48. I hate the feel of paper under my hand. Particularly when I'm writing things.

49. I hate chewing gum. I mean that I personally hate to chew it.

50. I love Watermelon Jolly Ranchers.

50 Things About Me...1-25

2009-01-06T22:15:00.004-06:00

I'm bored and I got a really neat idea from another mini-blog, so here's my list of 50 random things about me.

1. I can't sleep with the closet door open. It MUST be shut. I can't sleep with the bedroom door open more than a few inches, either. I can 'hear' if it's open too far and I'll get up to push it to.

2. I also CANNOT go to sleep if the sheet and blanket are not PRECISELY even and the sheet smooth under the blanket. Eli, after four years of marriage, has just now stopped complaining about this quirk. (Well, at least not every night.)

3. I hate my chin. I always have. It's the only part of me that I truly hate.

4. I can't have more jelly than peanut butter on my sandwich. Too gooey and sweet.

5. I have an extra toenail on each of my pinky toes. It's really more of a calcium deposit. But it's hereditary - my Mom and sister have it, too.

6. I can do a great Elvis lip. On both sides, even.

7. I cannot roller skate.

8. I also cannot whistle. Eli swears it's just a lack of know-how...but watch him try to teach me someday. It's funny.

9. I cannot stand to have mucus, dried or otherwise, in my nose. And if that means I have to pick my nose in public to make it so, well, so be it.

10. I have a tick in my throat when I'm upset or frustrated or if my OCD's going crazy.

11. I have no imagination. None. It's really quite sad. When I was little, I would pull my Barbies out, dress them, do their hair, and then that was it. They went back in the box for another day. No house, no make-believe, nothing.

12. I obsessively envision the worst thing that could possibly happen at any given moment. Even random things that don't really relate to what I am doing at the time.

13. I hate the movie E.T. I mean hate. As in loathe and despise. (Thank heaven I married someone who feels the same way!)

14. Ballet still makes my heart sing and I would give anything to be able to go back to it, yet I know I never will.

15. I have a complete inability to get over things in my past that made me feel small or stupid. And I relive them constantly - every day.

16. I would rather cook than clean.

17. I love to knit. Really love. I have SO MANY projects lined up.

18. I'm ready for another baby.

19. My favorite color is blue. Followed by purple and green. Then pink. Red, orange, and yellow all pretty lump together in the bottom.

20. When I sneeze, people down the street can hear me.

21. I hate my legs. I refuse to wear shorts or skirts without pantyhose.

22. I love to dress well. I would every day if I had the wardrobe for it. Tailored pants, skirts, well made sweaters, beautiful shoes...*sigh*

23. I can't sleep at night without Eli next to me.

24. There is nothing I love more than when I rock Brayden and read to him until he falls asleep in my arms. I'll probably do this right up until I'm too pregnant for him to sit on my lap.

25. I love to sit and watch the snow fall.

My Sweet Little Monkey Man

2008-12-24T21:22:00.006-06:00

This evening, as I was putting Brayden to bed, we had a rare moment. We had a difficult day today, he and I. All day today we've been butting heads. He's been testing his boundaries to see what Momma will and won't allow, and today she didn't allow much. Anyway, we were up in his room getting ready for bed. I started to walk across the room to grab his pajamas and turn out the overhead when I caught my toe in his bead maze (thereby catching it nearly a foot off the ground) and fell forward, hitting my leg on the corner of the box on which it is mounted. I hit the ground and started yelling the only word that seems to come out of my mouth when I'm in unbelievable pain. In my daze of pain and wondering if Brayden would pick up this word like he did d*mmit, I was aware of Brayden getting out of the chair and coming across the room to me. I don't remember what it was he was saying. It wasn't Daddy, but it was some other word meant to help me somehow. By the time Eli got to the door (after hearing me yell while downstairs with his headphones on, he dashed up the stairs), Brayden was petting me on the head saying "poor baby Momma". It was quite possibly the sweetest thing he's ever done. This was followed by more sweetness. I sat up and pulled my pant leg up to take a look at the dent in my leg which was turning hideously purple before my eyes, Brayden supported my leg from underneath and was running his other hand over my leg (but somehow knowing not to touch it directly) and babbling something that seemed meant either to heal my hurt or make me feel better. I asked if he would kiss my bobo, which seemed beyond his grasp. But he did put his hand behind my head and pull me to him so he could reach to kiss me on the nose (the only place where it seems is acceptable to kiss Mommas lately) four times! He is just too sweet. Shortly after he was done and off playing while I tried to tackle him and get him into his PJs.

Sneak Peek

2008-12-23T17:41:00.004-06:00

I know I haven't posted any pictures of the house yet. I've just been so busy that nothing's really been ready to take pictures of. My house is still not all set up. I've been working on restoring over 200 old photos, knitting Christmas gifts, tending to a very needy toddler, unpacking, keeping up with the everyday messes (and Eli and Brayden can make some messes!), making Christmas ornaments and folding origami and stringing popcorn and cranberries...you get the idea. Anyway, I've set my mind to just finishing the house this week. I worked hard yesterday and today with the result that many things are now organized and put into storage and one whole room is finished. Well, as finished as I can make it. This is the den. It's to the left as you walk in the front door. It is a no baby zone. Eli and I decided that after going crazy in the last house, we need a room just to ourselves. At some point, I'm going to buy a slipcover for the sofa. Where the crafts are now is where I'm going to put two 6 foot bookshelves for our monstrous collection of books. And on the other side of the TV I'm going to put a narrow bookshelf for movies. Under the TV I'm going to organize my yarn stash. On a side note, the TV in the den will be the only one in the house. As it is, I am adamant that TVs do NOT belong in bedrooms, but this is taking it a step further. I have, in the past, let Brayden watch far too much TV. Now he's only allowed to watch perhaps one show or a movie a couple times a week if I need a little reprieve. Other than that, it's free play and crafts and other non-mindless activities. Anyway, now that I'm off my little soapbox... As I put more rooms together, I'll take pictures and post them. By the way, the last two pictures are of the ceiling. The owners did a wonderful job on all the ceilings. Each one is done differently. They are neat and one of my favorite parts of the house.

Christmas is Coming!.....in January?

2008-12-11T10:16:00.003-06:00

So, we received a bit of upsetting news concerning Eli's pay today. We now know that Eli is a base salary employee and not hourly salaried. Not even Eli's boss or his boss knew that. Well, suffice it to say that every penny that I had budgeted for Christmas, we no longer have. You can see why I was understandably quite upset this morning. I called both my Grandmother and Eli's mother in tears hoping for some words of cheer and encouragement. They both said wonderful things and made me feel a little better, but I was still down. I mean, this is the first time in my child's life that we actually have enough money to live on and we were excited that we would be able to not only buy our son Christmas gifts (partially making up for the past 2 years where his parents could only afford a couple small, inexpensive items), but also to buy something for each other! But alas, that is not to be. In addition to the paycheck upset, our reimbursement for the thousands of dollars we spent to move up here has been delayed until January due to an error on his company's part. So I got off the phone mollified, but still depressed. Alas, those of you who know me well know that it takes me some time to get over things like this, but when I do, I always come up with some genius solution to my problem. And that is exactly what I did. If we have Christmas on December 25, it will not be a joyous one. Brayden will still have gifts from family to open and we will enjoy our good fortune and get into the spirit of the holiday, but it won't be the same. So this year, in the Campbell household, Christmas is coming on January 25! Yes, I'm re-writing the Christmas calender. By then our bills will all be settled and our reimbursement will have come through and I will have completed my restoration job and been paid for that. So we will have a much more joyous occasion and have gifts to open...just in January. And just think about how cheaply I will get our decorations! It's a bit unconventional, but since I made the decision I have been much more content than I was telling myself it didn't matter that I couldn't buy Brayden presents. Not to mention we get to enjoy the season one whole more month! (And as an aside to all our family...your presents from us will also come on Campbell's Christmas in January this year!) And as an added bonus, I won't be driving myself crazy trying to finish all my Christmas knitting in just 2 weeks! I really am content and rather happy with this decision.

On a side note, please pray for my great-aunt Mary Jane and her family. Her husband RG had a heart attack in the night a couple days ago and didn't survive. Not only is this very difficult for her considering the season, but RG's income will be missed terribly. She is trying to get her financial situation figured out right now in addition to grieving for her husband. If anyone wants to help with her January mortgage and help to buy her more time to figure everything out, let me know. Things are hard for her right now. She need lots of prayers.

Happy Holidays, everyone!
~Liz

Home at last in West Virginia

2008-11-20T15:47:00.004-06:00

So, here I sit in my own home (finally!!) in Fairmont, WV. It has been a long road here and it promises to be a bit longer yet. I can't believe that barely three weeks ago they told Eli "You're hired" and we embarked on a whirlwind, chaotic quest to move up here. But here we are. The drive up was nothing short of amazing in so many ways. For one, Brayden managed to weather the trip without too much complaint. I bought a lapdesk and strapped it to him at times so he could color, have a snack, or watch one of the two new movies I bought on our new portable DVD player. He loves Kung Fu Panda, so I got that for him. I also bought Sleeping Beauty. I wasn't sure if he'd like it, but when the scene came on where the fairies are turning the dress blue and pink, he just giggled and giggled. Around the last 4 hours or so, he'd just about had it. So we stopped and let him play in the McD (indoor!) playplace while I switched his carseat over into Eli's truck. The change in scenery managed to buy us enough time to get into town. He is, of course, sick and tired of the car. Because after we took a look at the house we were supposed to rent that night, we turned it down and found a hotel. Which meant we spent the first several days in the car looking for a place to live. Only now will he let me put him in the car without vehement protestations.

On the way up, we drove through Tennessee. It was positively breathtaking! All the trees were beautiful shades of red and orange. And once we got into the mountains it was so amazing. I truly hated that all my cameras were packed away deep in the truck. I would have loved to stop and get pictures. We had deer run across the interstate and we saw a stray cow on the side of the interstate in the grass just happily grazing away. A car stopped next to her as we passed, so I'm guessing they were there to guide her home. It's amazing to me that as we traveled north, we literally passed through the seasons in 15 hours. When we left Mobile, it was barely fall with all the trees just beginning to turn and the air starting to get that crisp autumn chill. We drove through TN in full-blown autumn. And now that we're here, we're very definitely in winter. I'm rather sad that I've missed my favorite season of the year almost entirely. But the snow has been beautiful. I remember the last time I saw real snow. It was when my Aunt Shari still had only three boys (!) and we went up to visit her around Christmas. I remember how cold it was! We went out to a field to sled and build snowmen and I was miserable! The snow was too powdery to make balls with and I remember making Mom put seven pairs of socks on my feet (yes, I remember that it was exactly seven) and still I ended up in the car with my feet in front of the heater vent trying to thaw them out. I also remember snowmobiling. I remember that Dad tipped us over and fell on my arm. And I remember that I really wanted to ride with Mom. And I remember getting hip deep in a snow drift trying to take a picture. Mom still has that picture somewhere. Anyway, this is all to say that it has been a very long time. I have loved sitting (or driving!) and watching the snowflakes fall. It's amazing to me sometimes the way it seems to drift aimlessly and how it just dances about in the wind. It's like a little ballet of snow just for me. I got in trouble with Eli because I was catching snowflakes and examining their shapes instead of unloading the U-Haul! As an intelligent person, I have always known that snowflakes have unique crystallized shapes, but that realization never sank in until I accidently caught a good look at one that had fallen on my black glove. They're beautiful! I was mesmerized.

Anyway, back to our story. We ended up living in a hotel for the first whole week while I frantically searched for a suitable place to live. We saw several things, but nothing ever seemed quite right. I always had a sinking feeling in my stomach when I thought about taking it and moving in. I kept leaving the same messages on apartments and houses. All the while Brayden was going crazy in the hotel and taking me with him. Finally, last Saturday, I looked at the perfect house! It was beautiful! They were asking a little more in rent than we were originally looking to pay, but with me going to go back to work we figured we could afford it. After we were turned down for one house because we owe Evans money (which I was upfront about), we briefly considered lying and saying we'd been living with family. But when I went to fill out the application it just didn't feel right. Then something inside me said Honesty is the Best Policy. So I filled it out and called the landlord and told her our story of our time with Evans and our financial difficulties and how in the end our expenses outweighed our income by hundreds of dollars. She didn't seem particularly fazed by it. In fact, she said that she'd had bumps in the road as well. I sent her the application and followed up by calling Evans and leaving a message on his phone asking for him to find it in his heart to give us a decent reference when she called. Come Monday morning, we had the house! And do you know that once we started moving in, people that I had left messages for started calling me back about other places for rent? By the Grace of God. I seem to live much of my life only by the Grace of God.

So, after a long two weeks that has felt, truly, more like a month or more, I am finally in a home. With my own bed and my own things. All but the heaviest things are unloaded off the truck. We'll finish that up later when Eli wakes up. (He pulled a 24-hour shift and didn't get in until after 6 this morning.) And now I'm going to start putting my things away and start buying the things I need and the little finishing touches. After that, I'm going to hunker down and try to knit on my Christmas gifts, do my photo restoration job, and hopefully start a new job. Yes, I'm going to be a busy little bee. I'll post all about the job later when I have more information. Suffice it to say that it will pay well, be part time, let me work from home about 80% of the time, and the company will pay for daycare when I go in to the office. How awesome is that?!

Introducing Baby Yoda!

2008-10-31T22:39:00.004-05:00

Isn't he adorable?! Not everybody got that he was Yoda. But they all thought he was cute. It took him a couple of houses to get the hang of it. The first house we went to he tried to go in for a visit. By the fourth house he had it down. Go up the steps, ring the bell, get the candy, leave. He's a pro now. He loved putting the candy into his pumpkin. In fact, he left with a cell phone, bottle of advil, scissors, toy, and various other things already in it that he refused to let me remove! I'm sure people thought I was nuts when they saw the bottle of advil in there! Anyway, it was pretty low-key. Just us and we only went to about a dozen houses before he was more than ready to head home. It was lots of fun. Happy Halloween all!

~Liz

If I Had A Million Dollars... Part 6

2008-10-24T10:11:00.006-05:00

So, this is my final post of my Million Dollar shopping spree. It's been fun, but I' tired. All that shopping is hard work! So I'm posting a few odd and end desires and then I'm done. The first thing I want is my evening gown. I know it's silly. I'll probably never have anywhere to wear it. But it's just so pretty!

Total = $349

I really want some nice patio furniture. Namely papasans! Oh how comfortable papasans are!

I want two of these...

and one of this...

and two of this, too. It's not a papasan, but it's so cool!

Total = $514.90

I also want my china. Eli and I picked it out when we were still dreaming of a wedding. I love love love this china. The pattern is Sweet Leilani by Noritake.

Total = $1788.50 for 10 place settings plus coffee, tea, and serving pieces.

And of course we need crystal to go with it.

Turning Point by Noritake

Total = $770 for 10 place settings of goblet, iced tea, and wine glass.

And my silver.

Total = $595.85 for 10 place settings and all serving pieces.

Total so far = $303,159.55

So in a whole week of shopping I've only managed to spend just over $300,000! There is, of course, more I would buy. Furniture, home furnishings, clothes for Eli and Liz (we don't have much in the way of clothes!), TVs, new computers...just stuff. Anyway, it's been fun! Thanks for shopping with me.

~Liz

If I Had A Million Dollars... Part 5

2008-10-23T16:11:00.012-05:00

I have gone CRAZY shopping at Williams-Sonoma today. I've spent $5,598.70 on kitchen stuffs! Their products are so overpriced, but I want them! Here's what I bought.

Waffle Iron

Timer (2hr, 1hr, 30min)

Thermometer

Strainers

Springform Pan

Splatter Screen

Soup Pot & Ladle

Skillet

Cutting Board & Strainer

Scale

Sandwich Maker

Salad Spinner

Salad Chef (to make dressing)

Safety Cutting Glove

S&P Grinders

Rolling Pin

Rolling Mat

Railway Cake Pan

Pumpkin Cake Pan

Pizza Stone

Pasta Machine

Panini Press

Mixing Bowls

Measuring Cups & Spoons

Mandoline

Loaf Pan

Knife Set

Ice Cream Maker

Herb Mincer

Glass Bowl Set

Frittata Pan

Food Mill

Filled-Pancake Pan (how cool is that!)

Egg Poacher

Double Burner Grill

Copper Mixing Bowl & Stand

Cooling Rack

Cookie Press

Pot & Pan Set

Colanders

Chopper

Chocolate Mill (again, how cool!)

Cherry Pitter

Backyard Bugs Cakepan

Angelfood Cake Pan

Total so Far = $299,141.30

If I Had A Million Dollars... Part 4

2008-10-22T15:54:00.007-05:00

Years ago when I was in middle school I fell in love with a Lladró (pronounced yah-droh). Lladró is a Spanish porcelain sculpture company. Their pieces are the most beautiful figurines you'll ever see. Their look is distinctive and breathtaking. Later, when I got married, I decided I wanted a Lladró to celebrate each major event in my adult life. So below is the original Lladró I fell in love with and the subsequent ones I chose as life milestones happened.

Prima Ballerina - Retired

The Happiest Day

Happy Anniversary

One For You, One For Me

Total so far = $233,542.60

I'd also buy us new cars. We totally need them! Eli fell in love with the Mazda RX-8 a few years ago. It's an awesome car! It's a sports coupe, but when you sit inside it it feels like you're in a sedan. And it's got great get-up-and-go!

Total so far = $258,542.60

I want a Chevy Trailblazer. I really miss my Blazer. A lot.

Total so far = $293,542.60

If I Had A Million Dollars... Part 3

2008-10-21T22:17:00.008-05:00

Tonight I've been shopping for Brayden. Specifically for toys. I've only made it through One Step Ahead and Toys 'R Us and I'm pooped! But I've racked up quite a bit of stuff! Here's what I bought.

One Step Ahead

(Okay, not exactly for Brayden, but doesn't it look so comfortable! I totally want this next time I'm preggo.)

(All pieces to a closet system!)

(A nifty little glider)

Total so far = $207,783.87

Toys 'R Us

(Sensory Stepping Stones)

(Zig Zag Zog - check it out here)

Total so far = $210,917.60

The last thing I'm buying tonight is a custom-built tree house. Here's a great site for them. Look at their gallery. How cool! I totally want one for Brayden.

Total so far = $230,917.60

Well, in three days of shopping I've only managed to spend just under a quarter of my million. I'll have to try harder tomorrow!

If I Had A Million Dollars... Part 2

2008-10-20T21:34:00.006-05:00

Tonight I'm being romantic in my thinking. I have always lamented that I never had the chance to have a wedding. I was very sad that things were such at the time I got married that I didn't feel that a wedding was a possibility for me. I have always thought that I'd one day renew my vows and have the wedding I've dreamed of (and still do). Every woman deserves to have a wedding!

So here's my dream wedding. I want to get married at Bellingrath gardens. It's just so beautiful! I want to have my dress custom made. I'd use this dress as a starting point.

Isn't the back positively beautiful! I love the way the train spreads from the split back and how the lace overlay is longer than the fabric. I'd have the bust made differently. Maybe a sweetheart neckline with tiny cap sleeves. And I'd wear a mantilla veil with it. I really like this one. Not too much embroidery and I'd wear it closer to my face and not just attached to my hair.

I wouldn't do a big reception. Instead I'd take the wedding party and close family and friends out to dinner at a five-star restaurant like the Pillars or Beinville Club. And my 'wedding cake' would be five tiers of these chocolate-covered strawberries! (Have I ever told you how I ADORE chocolate-covered strawberries? Well, I DO!)

That's it really. I don't want much. Well, except my engagement ring! My engagement ring will be a simple gold band with white gold Tiffany-style settings. It will hold a beautiful 2 ct round sapphire flanked by two 1 ct flawless round white diamonds. Similiar to this ring.

Total so far = $156,989.97 (about $15,000 on the wedding and $35,000 on the ring)

To continue my non-shopping shopping :), I want to go to Europe! I want to take six months and tour all over. I want to re-visit Ireland and actually get to see more of it than just from the inside of a bus. I want to see the Blarney Stone and the Dennis Tavern. I want to go to Italy! I want to see the Sistine Chapel and the Vatican and Pompeii and Venice! I want to go to France and visit the Louvre and the Eiffle Tower. I want to go to Spain and Germany and Switzerland and Israel and Jerusalem (okay, not exactly Europe) and so many other places! (I guess we'll go to Japan, too for Eli's sake :))

Total so far = $206,989.97 (I'm traveling in style!)

Well, that's all for tonight. There's actual shopping! to be done tomorrow. Clothes! Toys! Home decor! Come back and see.

If I Had A Million Dollars...

2008-10-18T21:54:00.008-05:00

Erin tagged me and asked what I would do if I had a million dollars. I have decided to forgo all the traditional responses like pay off debt or help family or build savings. In this post, with this imaginary million dollars, I'm going SHOPPING! I'm going to shop slowly over the next few days and post each day with the new things I'm going to buy.

First order of business would be to build a house. Okay, I know it's not exactly shopping, but it falls in the same fantasy realm for me. So anyway, here's the house I want to build.

Eli hates it. Says it's too big and needs to be two floors. I don't care. If I could, I'd build it. Only thing I would do is extend the 'porch' on the back of the house and make it a big deck with French doors leading from the master bedroom. Isn't it great? I'll of course be using all the finest in materials - stainless steel appliances, induction stove, granite, expensive tile, beautiful hardwood floors - you name it.
Total so far = about $100,000 including cost of a nice big plot of land in Tennessee (we're building it ourselves)

Now that I have a house, I need things to go in it. So I'm going house shopping! I'm starting with our bed. We desperately need a new one. So I'm buying this - my dream bed. A Sleep Number 9000!

While I'm buying beds, Brayden needs a new big boy bed. I'm thinking this one.

How awesome is that?! It has three beds! I see sleepovers where no-one has to sleep on the floor.
Total so far = $106,989.97 (in my million-dollar-fantasy world, tax and shipping don't exist)

That's all for tonight. I'm sleepy. Check back tomorrow for installment two!

Gymboree Day

2008-10-14T15:29:00.005-05:00

Gymboree started their huge sale today with things up to 60% off. Anyone who knows Erin know she's a total Gymbo freak. She called us yesterday and invited us to go shopping with her and Markus today. So we met them at Gymboree in Spanish Fort at 10 this morning and we didn't leave the store until 12! But look at everything Brayden got. Erin was so wonderful and bought Brayden a ton of clothes. Thanks again Erin!

Catch-Up Catch-All

2008-10-13T22:42:00.008-05:00

So, much has been happening around here. I'll stick to Brayden on this post and update on the rest of the family later.

So, first off, my son decided to do a little redecorating in his bedroom. He's quite the little budding interior decorator. Not!!! Here's what I entered his room (after cleaning the kitchen whilst he played in his room with the gate up) to find.

In retrospect, I realized that he wasn't being good and playing quietly like I had thought. Just a reminder that there's quiet and then there's TOO quiet.

This event was shortly followed by the lesson that though we can't color on the walls in the bedroom, we CAN color on the walls in the bathtub. You can see that he went to town with that idea.

We've recently discovered the joys of stickers! They're lots of fun and you can stick and re-stick them! Brayden really loved when I pulled these out the other day. He loved even more when he found he could take them off of his shirt and stick them on Mommy's shirt. How cool is that!

(This is as he's in the process of adorning Mommy.)

Eli and I took him to the Daphne Jubilee weekend before last (of which I will post pictures soon). We had fun. On the way back we stopped to grab lunch. Eli got him applesauce with his kids meal. When I got back in the car, this is the sight I saw. At first I thought Eli was crazy! But now I see the complete genius in it. Now it's the only way I let him eat applesauce. Brayden REALLY loves it and it's totally mess free!

Brayden's really into baseball caps. Well, really it's hats of any kind. He even has a Brayden-sized baseball cap that he'll actually keep on and wear out of the house. This is a favorite toy.

And last but not least, for those of you Moms out there who occasionally wonder why it is we don't feed our children anywhere other than the dining room table, this is why...

And that concludes our photo tour. We hope you enjoyed the ride and ask that you please come back soon. :)

Funny Moments

2008-10-06T21:50:00.002-05:00

Brayden loves spray bottles. He loves when I spray a tine bit into the air and the little droplets get on his skin and tickle. He just giggles and giggles. He'll make me do it for half an hour just giggling the whole time.

I got home tonight from work and Eli told me a funny story. Brayden was eating some mandarin oranges in a bowl. Once the oranges were gone, the bowl had juice left in it. Brayden was holding it and he kept getting distracted by the TV. Eli heard it start to drip onto the floor and he told Brayden to put it back on the table. Brayden looked up at him then looked down at the mess he'd just made. Then he bent down and said 'uh oooh' and started smearing the puddle with his hand! He did it two or three times before Eli took the bowl away.

2008-10-01T22:20:00.003-05:00

I haven't posted in nearly a month and there's so much I've wanted to catch you all up on. I have lots of pictures to share, but they will have to wait until tomorrow when I have the time and energy to get them all off my camera. In the mean time, here's some cute things that have been happening around here.

We're currently having "I don't want to go to sleep" evenings. It's mostly separation anxiety that started shortly after I went to work at nights. I can spend an hour sitting on the edge of his bed and he will fight valiantly to not close his (very sleepy and very heavy) eyes. Daddy is having to go in after me to make sure bedtime is final. In fact, as I write this, Mommy is trying to do it on her own. I put him down and snuggled for a minute and then left. It was only a matter of minutes before I heard little baby noises. He had come out of his room and was trying to crawl across the living room floor, thinking I wouldn't see him from the sun room. When I spotted him and started walking his way, he put his little hands over his eyes and put his head on the ground like he was hiding! It was too damned adorable. He even kept trying to "hide" as I carried him back to bed.

He's gotten more vocal lately. Not so much actual words as noises, but it's progress. His new thing is to spin in circles shouting 'round and round and round'. He also runs around the room like a crazy man giggling and shouting nonsensical things. He's so funny! He makes me laugh so much.

We went to the Eastern Shore Center (think outdoor mall) and walked around with a new friend of mine and her daughter. They have music playing all around and Brayden kept stopping in front of speakers hidden in the bushes and dancing. Oh how I wish I could post video of him dancing! It's too too funny. He really loves to dance. He gets into it, too. He's all bouncing and kicking his feet up and waving his arms around. And you can't help but join in. I was laughing so hard at him I was crying.

We've joined a mommy and me group and have all sorts of great playdates lined up this month. We're really excited! I think he'll really enjoy getting around other kids for a change. And I know I'll enjoy the mommy company!

I know there's so much more I want to share but it's late and I can't remember. I'll post more tomorrow. Good night!

Monkey Toes

2008-09-08T11:55:00.001-05:00

My little Monkey Man is so funny. He is certainly his mother's child. Last night he was walking around his room trying to pick up a bottle of nail polish with his toes! He was only succeeding in kicking it, but he didn't give up. He would pick it up and put it back in front of his foot if it got kicked under something. I think he's so funny.

Addition

2008-09-03T21:01:00.005-05:00

I forgot to finish posting pictures of Brayden's birthday! The day I uploaded them I was having connectivity issues, so I didn't post them all.

Brayden's Birthday

2008-08-31T22:18:00.000-05:00

Last Sunday my little monkey man turned two! We decided to keep it low key, so we just had my family over for cake and presents. Little man racked up on the gifts. He got a train table and train set from his Marmie and Pa Campbell, a Cars sofa that pulls out into a bed with a sleeping bag from his GeeGee, a Bounce & Spin Zebra from Aunt Erin and Aunt Leigh, and a puppy from his Gama and PawPaw (they also got him a basketball goal to stay at their house). Mommy and Daddy got him a vacuum, a broom, a bead maze, a take-along Thomas train set, a couple monster trucks, and some bedtime books. Daddy bought him the first five books in the Hardy Boys series. When Brayden gets a bit older, he'll start reading him a chapter each night before bed. Eli really wanted to buy a remote-control ultralight, but it was too expensive and will have to wait until Christmas.

Here are the pictures I took. As soon as I can get to Best Buy to get the cable I need, I'll post the video him opening his gifts.

Photo Shoot

2008-08-29T13:24:00.001-05:00

New photos are up on my photography blog. The link is to the right.

Happy Anniversary

2008-08-23T21:35:00.003-05:00

Today is our anniversary. It was four years ago today that we snuck off to City Hall and eloped! It might not have been my proudest moment (the sneaking off and eloping, that is) but I still maintain that marrying Eli was the best thing I ever did. I love him so much. I'm crazy for him. The plan for tonight was to go out to dinner and then go see my brother in the theater's production of Gypsy. Unfortunately, when we got downtown to go to our favorite restaurant, we found that it was not open for dinner due to Beerfest! Yes, by all means, let's have a big party where people can walk around all the bars and get as drunk as they can stand! Anyway, by the time we got to another restaurant for dinner, it was 7:20 and the play started at 8. So we decided to go to WalMart instead and pick up some things in case this storm affects us. It was definately a unique anniversary. We'll go to the play next week.

Tomorrow is Brayden's second birthday. I'll be sure to post lots of pictures of his cake and him opening gifts.

2008-08-14T13:55:00.002-05:00

I have a heavy heart this week. Most of you know that Eli was hospitalized Monday of this week and diagnosed with diabetes. I brought him home Thursday evening and he's been doing well, but it's still so hard to think about. Seeing Erin's post and the picture of Eli from a few years ago before life touched him really made me cry. I haven't let myself think about it in any sense other than the pragmatic or I know I'll totally lose it. A couple times I've started to tear up, but I feel like now's not the time to let go. There's still so much to do. We have to find a way to make it through the next few weeks. Eli doesn't have sick days, so next week we won't see a paycheck. On top of which his insulin and suppplies are $450 a month, and we're going to run out of the freebies they gave us in the next couple days. I know God will make a way for us (He always does) but it's hard to sit on my hands and wait while trying to decide what bills I can pay and how I'm going to afford the medicine he needs. Brayden's birthday is in two weeks and I know I should probably use the money Eli's parents sent for his present (a train table and train set) for insulin, but I just can't bring myself to think about it. We went looking at toys today and he beelined for the little train table they had set up. I just don't know if I can take his present away from him. We're hoping the doctor will have some samples we can use. Eli has been doing well. He has been taking the basal 24-hour insulin every night. But he's not been taking the rapid acting insulin each time he eats and his blood sugar hasn't gone above 200. Nor has it really risen after eating. It gives us a little hope. I'm looking for a specialist so we can have the proper tests run and know for sure if his pancreas is working at all and what may have triggered this all of a sudden. And then we have to let the Air Force know. I don't know what they're going to do. It's all a lot right now.

Photo Fest

2008-08-05T22:35:00.007-05:00

So, I have admittedly neglected my blog lately. So I thought I'd post a bunch of photos from the last few weeks.

These are from Kid's Day out at Langan Park. The balloon on his wrist is a turtle. He thought all the animals were curious to look at. And he thought we were all out of our minds when the lady was painting Mickey on his arm.

I took Brayden downtown to Bienville Square and let him terrorize...I mean chase...the squirrels. He had an absolute ball!

This about sums up the day.

And here's a few odd pictures. Brayden loves playing Guitar Hero and taking baths with Daddy.

Brayden's First Haircut

2008-07-28T20:35:00.004-05:00

This is the first of several posts to update everyone on what's been happening around here. Last Friday, Brayden got his first official haircut! It was really cute and I got great shots! Here are the pictures! Aren't they adorable?!

2008-06-11T20:29:00.000-05:00

All Things New & Exciting

2008-06-11T15:21:00.003-05:00

So, lots of exciting news. First off, I got my hair cut! And I'm not talking about a trim. She took the better part of a foot off my hair. (I'm donating it to locks of love.) Now it falls halfway between my chin and my shoulders and curls under at the bottom. It is just so cute! I LOVE it! I was really anxious that it might freak Brayden out, but he just looked at me for a second and then went on about his day. Eli, on the other hand, didn't take it quite so well. I don't think he really likes it as of yet. It makes me look rather different and he's going to need more time to adjust to it. Although before bed last night he did finally admit that it was pretty cute. I'll take pictures and get them up later so you can all see.

Second, and probably more important, Brayden has started trying to talk! I knew it would come in time, but it has been the source of many arguments between Eli and me and I'm glad he's decided to start communicating. He said 'ball' again yesterday, which he hasn't said in many months, and he'll occasionally say 'up'. He said something else, too, but I can't remember what. (I know, I know, way to go Mom.) He's also doing more signing which is a blessing. He will sign 'drink', 'up', 'down', and 'more'. And he points when I say 'go'. He knows and responds to 'car' and 'bath', 'food'/'eat' is still a work in progress. I think that's harder for him because it refers to a variety of things. Even though 'drink' also refers to several different things, they are always presented in his sippy cup. I'm just very excited. It's a huge step forward for us. He's also listening to me more. I can ask him to come to me to change is diaper and he will come. I sit down in the rocking chair with his Puppy Love and a book and he crawls in my lap to read before bed. In fact, I'm now putting him down more or less awake and he'll doze off on his own. He'll hold my hand without much complaint. When he starts to run off in public, I can call him back and he comes to me. The list goes on, but the point is his tantrums and pushing the limits has eased up a lot.

My last big news is that Eli has quit playing WoW! A new game came out that everyone has moved to. He likes it well enough, and a bit more considering all his friends are on it, but our computer won't run it as it is. We would need a new processor, graphics card, and power supply at the very least, and that's just not money we have. So Eli is off gaming. He says it's until we have the money for a new computer, but I think that if I can keep him interested in other things, that he may well not go back at all. He's been talking about that for several months now, but has always gotten bored with nothing else to do, so he's continued to play. But today we're going to buy the supplies and Eli's going to build the baby a wagon! The one I want is $100 and that's just too much for us. So Eli's going to build it instead. (Totally his idea, amazingly enough!). That should keep him sufficiently occupied for a couple weeks. I'll let you know how it goes.

We went to see Kung Fu Panda last night. So good! Brayden actually sat and watched the entire thing without squirming once! He got really excited during the last 20 minutes or so. That will definitely be one we purchase for him.

Anyway, I guess that's about it. I'll check back in soon.

~Liz

Little Man

2008-05-31T22:39:00.004-05:00

My baby's growing up! Eli and I took him to the park this afternoon. He had so much fun. He sat on the spring airplane while Daddy bounced him around. And considering that Daddy bounces pretty crazily, it was amazing that he managed to hold on. And Daddy put him on the big kids swings for the very first time! He sat there and held on and giggled and had a ball swinging while Daddy pushed him. No more baby swings for my little man! Then Daddy took him up onto the play area. My little man climbed up the rock all by himself! It was so funny, he'd get to the top of the rosk and refuse to step onto the walkway. (He seems to be afraid of grates in the ground, and the walkway had holes in it.) And he slid down the big slide all alone! He just sat down and scooted out and slid down. Mommy caught him at the bottom, and then he turned around and helped catch Daddy as he slid down. I just can't believe how much he's grown up! He's even getting his first pair of big boy shoes soon! (Just as soon as I can afford to order them. Shoes are expensive!) I'm thinking about getting him the cutest little pair of thong sandals, but I'm not sure how he'll react to the thing between his toes.

It's late, so I'll have to get on tomorrow and give a more thorough update. Good night!

~Liz

Photo Shoot

2008-05-28T22:07:00.002-05:00

After much trial and tribulation and endless hours of staring at Photoshop, I have finally finished editing Jeb and Brittany's engagement photos. I am really pleased with how they turned out. I only hope they like them half as much when I show them tomorrow. I just put the photos up on my Photography blog. Go check them out!

~Liz

Hodge Podge

2008-05-23T23:54:00.003-05:00

I just got back from Decatur this evening. My Grandmother and I went up to see my favorite cousin, Tyler, graduate high school. Tyler and I have been like best friends ever since he was little. (Technically, I was little, too.) It was a nice graduation, and of course he graduated with honors. He's headed to Southern Miss next year to major in Jazz Studies with the intent to teach in college. He got a full Presidential Scholarship! I'm just so proud of him and who he has become. I love him to death. He's my Exit Buddy! (Ask me for that story some time.)

Last Monday I did my first offical photo shoot. It was an engagement shoot for my best guy friend, Jeb, and his new fiancée, Brittany. They are just so cute together I couldn't help but get great shots. I finally got a card reader that works and just finished reading up on Photoshop techniques (to compensate for my photography faux pas seeing as I was extremely nervous), so I can start editing tomorrow. I'll post a preview in a couple days for all to see. It was really funny when I got the card reader home and downloaded all my pictures onto the Mac (that my fantastic FIL gave me to use! Thank you!). Apparently the hard drive on it is really small (think 4GB small), and with all the pictures on it, I only had 44.4MB of free space! I could barely make anything function with so little space. So I just ordered myself a 160GB external hard drive along with a 4GB memory card for the camera since I ran out of space on the last shot Monday.

Poor little man is sick again. I don't know what it is yet, but he's been running a fever off and on for a few days and today on the drive home he vomitted. I felt so bad for him. He was screaming and crying (he always gets really upset when he vomits. I think it's kind of traumatic or him) and it was a full 10 minutes before we got to the gas station and I could get him out of the seat and comfort him and get him cleaned up. It's a good thing my car seat needed cleaning anyway, cause now it's just gross. Fortunately (TMI coming up) it was mainly chunky and not so much wet. Actually, I don't thing there was any realy wet to speak of.

Anyway, onto a new subject...I think that's about it. I'm going to go knit a few rows on the afghan I'm making for my MIL (so going to have to be a Christmas present...maybe even next year's Christmas present!) and get some much needed rest. Love you all!

~Liz

Tag Questions

2008-05-14T08:04:00.003-05:00

I was recently tagged by Erin and I tagged my sister and cousin in turn. Well, Tracy pointed out that there is no 25 or 35. So she added questions. Here's my answers. (Your turn, Erin.)

25. Favorite music? Country - In particular Dixie Chicks and Rascal Flatts, although Dave Matthews Band is my all-time favorite group.

35. Favorite day dream? The one where I can see myself in the future in my own house with my four children.

Baby Booties

2008-05-13T15:47:00.003-05:00

So, I finally finished the baby booties for little Sara Grace. I posted the picture on my knitting gallery. (Link to the right. ---->) Go check them out!

Mother's Day Continued

2008-05-11T22:00:00.002-05:00

First off, Happy Mother's Day to all you mothers out there! There is truly no more important and wonderful and rewarding job in the world and every one of you are wonderful mothers. You all inspire me and push me to be a better Mom to Brayden.

Well, as you may have seen in my post earlier today, I took my brother and sister out yesterday morning to do a little photo shoot. I then took the photos and put them into a beautiful and unique 8-frame collage picture frame I found at WalMart and gave it to my Mom for Mother's Day. I gave one to my Grandmother, too. Mom nearly cried, she loved it so much! There are no recent shots of either Brandon or Michelle and I was really very pleased with how they came out. And it was a good warm-up for the engagement shoot I'm doing for a very good friend in a couple weeks.

We drove over to Mississippi today to visit Eli's Mom. It was a nice visit. We don't get to see them but once every couple months. We sat outside for a long time enjoying the nice day and chatting. Eli's Dad gave me a new lense for my camera that I'm very excited to play around with and gave me an extra 1Gig memory card that he had as we were getting in the car, which is a blessing. I'm just thrilled about my new toys. He spent a long time today showing me new things and new editing techniques. While we were there, I got to see the pictures we took at Easter. Oh, they are so fabulous! I've put them in the post below.

When we got home I went over to my mother's and she gave me my present. She and Clint are replacing all the lightbulbs in my house with the new energy-efficent bulbs. They're better for the environment and will help make a cleaner Earth for Brayden.

Well, that's about it. I'm going to go lay in bed and enjoy the last little bit of my Mother's Day.

~Liz

Photo Shoot

2008-05-11T10:48:00.000-05:00

In preparation for a Mother's Day present for my Mom, I took my brother and sister out yesterday morning to the Mobile Botanical Gardens and did a little photo shoot. It wasn't much but it was my first time out and I'm really proud of how they turned out. Of course, I don't know much about photo editing or they would look better. But I really wanted to share! I'm heading to my MIL's today, so I'll post more when I get back. Happy Mother's Day!

Tag!

2008-05-01T09:52:00.000-05:00

I've been tagged my Erin. I had fun reading neat obscure facts about her, so here's my list. I am tagging Michelle, Tracy, and Mom.

48 ODD Things about you! Learn 48 things about your friends, and let them learn 48 things about you!

1. Do you like blue cheese? No
2. Have you ever smoked heroin? Heaven no - I've never smoked or otherwise taken any type of drug
3. Do you own a gun? No
4. What flavor do you add to your drink at sonic? I get milkshakes at Sonic
5. Do you get nervous before doctor appointments? Yes - I never know why
6. What do you think of hot dogs? They're okay, but I'd rather have a pizza
7. Favorite Christmas movie? The original Grinch Who Stole Christmas (my Mom rented it for me when I was very little and then declared I looked just like Cindy Loo Who in my long nightgown. Her nickname for me was Who Baby after that.)
8. What do you prefer to drink in the morning? Coffee
9. Can you do push ups? Yes, but I top out a 8 or 9
10. What's your favorite piece of jewelry? My wedding band
11. Favorite hobby? Knitting
12. Do you have A.D.D.? Yes
13. What's one trait you hate about yourself? My self-doubt
14. Middle name? It was Nicole before I got married - now it's my maiden name (Dennis)
15. Name 3 thoughts at this exact moment: Andrew, please don't climb on me! I need to go get the baby monitor so I can hear Brayden wake up. Good lord my house needs cleaning before company arrives!
16. Name 3 things you bought yesterday? bread, milk, pizza rolls
17. Name 3 drinks you regularly drink? I only drink water and milk - Oh, I guess I drink a cup of coffee most mornings
18. Current worry? That I won't get the baby booties finished by tomorrow.
19. Current hate right now? I don't generally hate anything. It's a waste of my time and mental faculties
20. Favorite place to be? In bed
21. How did you bring in the New Year? In my favorite place to be!
22. Where would you like to go? Italy
23. Name three people who will complete this? Tracy, Michelle, and Adele
24. Do you own slippers? No, but I'd love a nice soft, squishy pair
26. What year would you go back in time to? You couldn't pay me enough to go back to any time. Right now is the best time in my life.
27. Can you whistle? No. Eli swears it's just lack of knowing how, but I'm telling you I just can't do it.
28. Favorite color? Blue (or Purple)
29. Would you be a pirate? No - I'm not the salty sea air/wind blowing in your face kind of gal.
30. What songs do you sing in the shower? I don't sing in the shower - It's all about relaxing and excaping for a few minutes
31. Favorite girl's name? Laura
32. Favorite boy's name? Brayden
33. What's in your pocket right now? Receipts from stuff for the baby shower.
34. Last thing that made you laugh? The mental image of my sister banging her forehead against the keyboard to spell her name - Oh, and my Mom threatening to fart on Michelle if she didn't get out of her space on the bed
36. Worst injury you've ever had? Food poisoning
37. Do you love where you live? I want to live in Birmingham or Tennessee
38. How many TVs do you have in your house? 2 - I'm adamantly against TVs in the bedroom or we'd have more
39. Who is your loudest friend? Erin
40. How many dogs do you have? None, but we really want a Shih Tzu
41. Does someone have a crush on you? Wouldn't have the faintest clue
42. What is your favorite book(s)? Coming Home by Rosemunde Pilcher
43. What is your favorite candy? Hershey's Dark Chocolate with almonds
44. Favorite Sports Team? I don't do sports
45. Your favorite meal? Chicken Wiki
46. What were you doing 12 AM last night? Sleeping
47. What was the first thing you thought of when you woke up? I wonder if I can hit the snooze for another five minutes before the kids get here.
48. Do you have any odd habits? I have a tick in my throat when I'm upset or agitated.

Growing Moments

2008-04-24T22:06:00.000-05:00

I just love watching Brayden grow up. Just today he's managed to tickle me pink all day long. He's trying to talk with his hands, but he's still figuring out how to make the signs and how they relate to the world around him. He's been going up and down stairs (when he's not holding my hands) by crawling. Somewhat awkardly, I might add. He even crawls over uneven ground - he knows he can't walk over it yet. But this afternoon he learned that he can sit on a step and go down to the next one on his bottom instead of turning around and backing down. And he was so funny playing in the front yard. He's getting more adventerous. He'll go into the other side of the yard and even into the driveway where he discovered there's nifty-frito dirt to play with. We took his riding lion outside and he kept finding neat things in the yard and putting them on the seat of the lion and pushing them around. Then Brandon came over for some math help and while he was here, he called my phone from his and I put it on speaker and handed it to Brayden. Brayden was fascinated that Brandon's voice was coming out of the phone and he just lit up walking around with the phone and talking up a storm! I got some good video of it. I'll have to get a cord and upload it to post here. It may be a few days, though. And then tonight, as I was giving him a bath, he discovered that pouring water back into the bath is losing its appeal, but pouring water over the side of the tub and watching Mommy lunge and squeal is hilarious! Then he started pouring the water down his tummy and giggling like crazy. He would look at me like he was looking for confirmation that it was indeed funny, then he would kick his legs and rock back and let loose. Again, I got cute video.

I have decided that I need to take more video of him. I like still shots and all, but as a child, I remember being fasinated with seeing videos of myself. Much more so than flipping through photo albums of still shots of moments I didn't really remember. I mean, there's an egomaniac hiding in each one of us, and that's only multiplied a hundred fold with kids. I also want to start going through all the video I've taken since I got my video camera and edit them onto VHSs. I may make a tape for each of the grandparents to have. Especially Eli's parents since they don't get to see much of Brayden. I'll let you know how it goes.

~Liz

A Step Up in the World

2008-04-21T12:37:00.000-05:00

Eli called me with good news today. He got a little promotion. It's not really a promotion so much as a step up. Since he started, he's been working in the yard, which is the bottom of the totem pole. There are two off-site locations, one is in the mall, and one is an old K-Mart building they call the EDC (I think). Anyway, Eli got moved out of the yard and into the EDC. It shows that they trust him enough to not feel the need to watch over him all the time. He'll keep his cubical in Krebs with all the other IT personnel, but he'll also have a office at the EDC building. I'm really proud of him!

Eli and I went to the ballet Sunday. They did Carnival of the Dance. It was really cute. It was geared toward little kids. Before they got into the Carnival, they did the shade (spirit) scene from La Bayadère and the Puss in Boots and White Cat pas de deux from Sleeping Beauty. The Sleeping Beauty pas de deux was as cute as I remember, but I was sorely dissappointed in the shade scene. The dance itself is such a beautiful and elegant expression that's all about the graceful lines of the arabesque and the cambré. But the dancers simply didn't have the control necessary. It looked sloppy and uncoordinated. The Carnival I have never seen before, but it was extremely cute. Full of bright colors and animals.

So, on another note, Brayden is picking up more of the sign language I've been really working on in the last week or two. Just this afternoon, Brayden wanted down out of his booster seat. Normally he hits the table and yells. And every time I ask him what he wants? And I say ALL DONE, DOWN and sign it. And then I take his hands and make him sign it. Well today, I asked if he wanted ALL DONE, DOWN, and as I was reaching for his hands, he signed it himself! I'm really very excited. I'd rather hear him speak, but if I can get him to communicate with his hands instead of yelling, I'll take it for now.

I know there was something else I wanted to say. In fact, it was the reason I got online to post, but I can't remember. Mommy brain and all that. If I remember, I'll come back later.

~Liz

Bit of an Update

2008-04-19T09:14:00.000-05:00

Well, I'm finally well and Eli's on the mend. Eli got some stomach virus a couple days ago and we ended up taking him to the ER in the middle of the night. But he's starting back on solids and his nausea's gone.

The couple next door just had a baby boy last week. I hate that I've lived next door to Ryan and Katy for two years now and never introduced myself. So I went over last night to take them a casserole and cupcakes and got to see little Cooper. He's precious. He weighed in at 6 lbs 14 oz. Katy looks like she's doing well.

There's really not much else happening around here. My Grandmother finished knitting my sweater Wednesday. It's just beautiful and so very soft! I'm going today to find some pretty beads to go on the end of the ties and I'll post pictures of it when I've finished blocking it. In knitting news I've been working on Sharon's baby booties. I have one finishes and they're turning out great. I'm also working on a top for my Mom and an afghan for my Mother-in-law. I made a mistake on the afghan and hadn't put in lifelines. I ended up having to rip it out (only 16 rows thankfully) and start over. You can bet I'm putting in lifelines this time! I'll post some previews when I get a little farther along. It's very intricate.

Well, I'm going to get Brayden dressed and get out of the house for a bit. I'll post more later. The ballet's Sunday and I'll try to get some pictures.

~Liz

2008-04-09T20:48:00.000-05:00

So, the morning after my last post Brayden woke up with a fever of 105. When I took him into the doctor I found out he had a double ear infection. My poor little man. On top of which I gave him a couple bites of the egg and he has a touch of food poisoning, too.

Here's everyone's warning to be careful how long you leave your Easter eggs out of the refridgerator. Because I left mine out a bit too long. So when I ate them yesterday (out of the fridge), I got violently ill with food poisoning. So ill, in fact, that I vomited, which anyone who knows me well knows I NEVER do. If I had found someone to come sit with the baby, I was going to have Eli drive me to the hospital. I have never been so miserable in my whole life. It's been over 24 hours, and I'm still ill. I'm so fortunate to have good friends! Shirley, to whom I haven't spoken in months, came over this morning after I texted her asking for help. She looked after Brayden while I slept. She even cleaned my kitchen! I mean, cleaned, as in cleaner than it's been in months. She took him with her when she went to pick her son up from school and they went back to her house. Eli picked him up on the way home. There just aren't words to express how grateful I am.

104.8

2008-04-06T12:43:00.000-05:00

That was my son's fever when he woke up this morning! That follows a steady climb over the last two days. I have been giving him Tylenol and Motrin simultaneously (thanks for the tip, Erin!) and it brings his fever down to negligible, but if the medicine wears off it just comes back stronger. It's so frusterating! I guess I'm going to start waking him up to give him medicine in the night. He's just waking up too hot. At least he seems to be feeling better today. He's more active and happy and has an appetite. Maybe it's a sign that the fever will break soon. I sure hope so. Because if I see the thermometer hit 105 I think I'll have a heart attack!

2008-04-01T19:01:00.000-05:00

So, I'm finally here to do my Easter post. I know, I know, it's been over a week. But we've all been sick (in fact, we're all still sick) and I just haven't had the energy to upload pictures and clean them up so I could make a post. But I got all my (very minimal) editing done this morning and I'm ready to roll.

To start off the weekend, on Friday afternoon we headed over to Eli's parents house for the night. It was so nice to get to visit with them. They live just far enough away that we don't get over there but every so often. Saturday was Markus' first birthday and the party was in the front yard. I was really cute. It was nautical themed and Erin did really well with the decorations. She had the cutest little touches that I would have never come up with. I wish I had gotten some pictures, but I was videoing instead. The birthday boy looked like he had tons of fun digging into his cake. And Helen helped Markus open his presents. Actually, she opened most of his presents without him, but it was cute. After the guests left and we got everything cleaned up, Eli's Dad set up the studio and we did pictures. We haven't had pictures of all three of us since Brayden was tiny. I'm really excited to see how they look.

We headed back to Mobile that evening and went to my mother's to dye Easter eggs. It was tons of fun! We had six dozen eggs. Yes, six dozen. We only lost a few. We had six kinds of dye. We combined a couple to get stronger dye, gave Brayden a couple cups of his own, and we had stuff to make them glitter, tie dye, and egg stencils. It was quite a spread. Little man was so covered in dye by the end of it! I wasn't able to get it all off for Easter the next morning. Here's some highlights.

Brayden's Corner (the blue and green egg on the far side of the egg carton are Brayden's very own works of art)

Our finished products

Sunday morning we got up and headed to church in time to see the butterflys released. It's an Easter tradition that every year Ms Candy gets caterpillars and puts them on display several weeks before Easter. It lets the kids watch them as they transform and then they release them on Easter morning. This year they were housed in individual boxes so each child could release a butterfly. Daddy helped Brayden set a butterfly free while I got some cute shots. Brayden was more interested in the wrapping than what was inside.

I wish I had gotten a good shot of Brayden in his little outfit, but it was too cold and by the time church was over, he was so tired. I suppose now that it's warmer I'll get him dressed and go to the church to get a few pictures.

After Brayden's nap Mom, Clint, and Michelle came over to do a little Easter egg hunt (one for Brayden, and one for the older kids) and watch Brayden open his basket. He racked up this year. He was totally more into the chocolate than the toys. Now I have to get Eli into the front yard one Saturday to build a frame to hang his new swing from. Brayden's just loved his new bath toys. He thinks the fishing set is just hilarious.

Well, that's about it. We've been working on getting over this virus and I've been planning my Aunt Sharon's baby shower. I'm really having a lot of fun. I'll give you all the details later.

~Liz

Happy Easter!

2008-03-23T20:10:00.000-05:00

Just wanted to say Happy Easter to you all and post this picture. We went to the mall last night and had Brayden's picture taken with the Easter Bunny. I'll post again tomorrow and tell you all about our very fun Easter weekend.

So much is happening...I think

2008-03-08T22:42:00.000-06:00

I feel like the older Brayden gets, the more it feels like so much is going on, when really I'm just cataloging all the neat and wonderful things he does. Like he has a new face he makes where he scrunches up one side of his mouth and starts to talk. It's just so adorable. And I love that he's now old enough that when I look at him and he grins at me, I can tell there's a feeling of love behind his eyes. It just melts my heart every time. He's growing closer to his Daddy and I just love watching them together and seeing how much Brayden clearly adores Eli. It's really done a lot for Eli. It was hard for him in the beginning while Brayden was so clearly attached to me. Now Brayden is such a Daddy's boy.

We got our tax return recently, so we've been having a lot of fun spending some of the money. Eli went out a bought a PS2 and all the stuff for us to play Guitar Hero III together. It's been a blast hanging out together the past few days. Eli has finally given up on World of Warcraft. (Duck! I think the sky is coming down!!) I know, I never thought I would see the day either. But he's really been unhappy with it as of late and just hasn't found another hobby to immerse himself in. Well, I told him he could go splurge on a PS2. It's so wonderful to spend time with him doing something we both really enjoy. It's done wonders for our marriage just in the three days we've had it. I didn't realize how much I missed spending time together - or that we weren't before.

I went out today and bought Brayden one of those little buggys that look like cars and have a handle so Mom or Dad can push baby around the neighborhood. I got it at a consignment shop for $24. I was looking for an Easter outfit, but I that search continues. I guess I'll just go to Sears and get one of those little outfits that has dress pants, and button up shirt, and a sweater vest. Some of them are cute enough and there's several in nice springtime colors. I'm ordering Brayden some new shoes tomorrow. We went to a store that carries them in Fairhope today to make sure they would fit, but the store didn't have any of the styles I want. I'm getting these to match his outfit for Markus' birthday party. I'm also getting these. I was going to get a little pair of white sandals for Easter, but if I'm buying him a little pants ensemble instead of a dressy outfit like a jumper, then I'll wait until closer to summer.

I went to WalMart the other day to get some things (like my Swiffer Wet Jet...YAY!) and bought Brayden a little original Swiffer. I was using my Sweep & Vac the other day and Brayden was having a blast trying to help me vacuum. So I brought the Swiffer home and only put together two parts of the handle and gave it to him for a toy. He loves it! He's been walking around all over the house pushing it around. Eli was excited about the free slave labor! I got a couple cute shots.

Brayden has started posing when I pull out my camera and start clicking away. He's going to me a ham, I can see it now.

I really wanted to buy the little Classic Pooh diaper bag from Target I've been drooling over...I mean eyeing...since, oh, this time last year. But when I went over there last wekk, it wasn't there! I have searched everywhere online including eBay and have decided that I just waited too long. I'm pretty sure they don't make it anymore. I know they had it around December. I was supposed to get it for Christmas, but didn't. I guess now I'll never have it. I really feel such a sense of loss. It was sso cute and I really, really wanted it. They have a new one that's similar, but the design just isn't as cute as the one I wanted. Oh well.

My sister's birthday was Tuesday. My mom took her out to breakfast and lunch and to have her colors done and get her first round of makeup. We got to tag along. It was a really fun day. We gave her a Caboodle to put it all in and I finished her scarf and gave it to her. You can see a picture of it on my FO Gallery.

I guess I've rambled on enough for one night. It's late and I'm tired. Everything else I have to say will have to wait for my next post. Night all!

~Liz

What kind of yarn are you?

2008-03-04T13:40:00.000-06:00

According to this neat little quiz one of the girls posted on KH, I'm merino wool. The description is so me. Here, check it out.

What kind of yarn are you?

You are Merino Wool.You are very easygoing and sweet. People like to keep you close because you are so softhearted. You love to be comfortable and warm from your head to your toes.
Take this quiz!

Quizilla |
Join

| Make A Quiz | More Quizzes | Grab Code

Photo Fest

2008-03-03T20:17:00.000-06:00

So, I've got lots to share. Firstly, last week I decided to let the kids fingerpaint. I didn't want paint in clothes or on my walls, so instead I added food coloring to tapioca pudding. Then if they stuck their fingers in their mouth I wouldn't have to worry about toxicity. I bought Andrew some Magic Sand and he played with that instead. Here's a couple good shots.

On another note, the nursery is in a temporary state of finished. I still need to sand and stain the dresser and get a twin bed and hang pictures. But here it is for now.

Brayden's sleeping so well on his own and it's so lovely to get a full night's sleep for the first time since I got pregnant.

On another note, Brayden is learning how to throw and catch a ball. Mom has a little stuffed football at her house and we've been practicing when we go visit. He loves it. He's really obsessed with balls and the word ball. In fact, he's now signing it and trying hard to say it. He gets the "ba" part out, but he's still timid about saying it. I think he's still feeling it out in his mouth. On the signing note, he's also signing "more" and he responds to "kiss". If you ask for a kiss while signing it, he'll give you a kiss.

We went over to my mother's last night and I gave Brayden's hair a trim. His bangs were down in his eyes. I didn't want to give him a full haircut. I won't do that until there's enough hair for me to get a keepsake curl. But I had to trim the front. He hated it. He fought pretty good. My mom had to hold his hands with one hand and steady his head with the other. All things considered, I didn't do such a bad job. And it'll have a couple weeks to grow out a little before Easter. Look at my little man!

Well, that's all for now. I'll check back in later.

~Liz

Romance

2008-02-28T16:21:00.000-06:00

Whoever says Eli isn't a romantic hasn't met the Eli I married. (The one nobody gets to see but me.) I came home from an errand the other night after a long and trying day of kids. (Not mine.) I was right in the middle of a long complaint when I looked at my computer and stopped dead in mid-sentence. Sitting on my keyboard was an envelope and a box. Eli had stopped by Hallmark and bought me a gift on a whim. The card is just beautiful. Eli's really good at picking lovely cards and this one is certainly no exception. And he bought me a pair of entertwined glass wedding bands. The in the lid of the box is a lovely little poem about the Bond of Love. Here's a couple pictures.

Hi, my name is Liz...

2008-02-28T08:42:00.000-06:00

...and I am an addict.

I've recently jumped aboard the knitting express while it was flying by at unknown - but no doubt very fast - speeds. Anyway, in all my perusing for patterns on the web (of which I have now bookmarked well over 30!) I stumbled upon a website called Knitting Help. In addition to having FANTASTIC videos demonstrating every possible kind of stitch, increase, decrease, technique, etc. they have a forum. Oh man, am I hooked. I'm like a druggie on Meth. I check it every hour just to see if anything new's been posted. And considering that there's probably hundreds of active members located all over the world from Japan, to Israel, to Turkey, there's ALWAYS something new happening. I mean, I've only been a member since the 17th and I've already made 62 posts. (That's nearly 6 a day!) I really gotta cut back. And it's not any good for my knitting queue. People post new patterns and my queue has just grown like crazy. I mean, check these out. Are they not the most adorable thing you've ever seen! I absolutely MUST knit a pair - or six. Good lord, I'm going to spend a fortune on this hobby, I just know it. I better start budgeting for yarn or I'll break the bank!

Knitting

2008-02-23T10:37:00.001-06:00

I have decided I want to be able to keep up with all the things I knit and even make a photo gallery of my creations. This has lead me to create a FO (finished object) gallery. The link to which is on the sidebar next to this post. As I knit more projects, I'll update the FO blog. Last night I finished a scarf for Mom. It came out beautiful! It's so soft and has a lovely weight! I more than doubled the original pattern and am extremely pleased with the end result. Keep checking in...more FOs to come!

Happy Valentine's Day

2008-02-14T22:50:00.000-06:00

I'm just popping in to say Happy V Day. I hope you all had an enjoyable day. Eli and I got dressed up and went out to dinner at our favorite Japanese restaurant (I'm eating the left over sushi as we speak) and then headed home for a little alone time. All in all it was a really nice evening.

Brayden has been sleeping in his own room all week and I must say, it is bliss! I had forgotten what a full night of sleep was like. He's still rousing once a night somewhere between 4 and 6, but all I do is go and tuck him in and head back to bed. And it's so nice to have Eli sleeping next to me again. Anyway, not much else happening here. I'll check in again soon.

~Liz

Lé Nursery

2008-02-13T14:42:00.000-06:00

The nursery is finished! YAY! It was actually finished Sunday, but I've been really lazy and haven't posted the pictures yet. I'm still working on getting all the furniture bought/stained and in place. I'll do another post in a few weeks with the full effect. But here's how fabulous it looks...

And here's a couple cute pictures to tide you over to next post. I love the second one. It's like, "Don't worry Mom, I'll get my own clothes."

Ladybug

2008-02-08T13:21:00.000-06:00

I'm just dying to show off my Valentine's present. Yes, I know it's not Valentine's Day yet. But Eli went into the little antique shop near his work the other day and found this and bought it for me. And anyone who knows Eli knows he can't stand to keep surprises a secret. So I got my gift a week early. Isn't it positively beautiful! I love it so much! I'm only taking it off to sleep and bathe. It's my most favorite present anyone's ever given me.

Update in Liz Land

2008-02-05T14:01:00.000-06:00

So, I'm getting into a knitting groove. I'm almost finished with Michelle's beanie/hat. I also have to finish Mom and Michelle's scarves. Cute scarves with slits near one end so you can keep it tight around your neck. I'm also knitting myself a sweater to wear on Valentine's Day. Here, check it out.

Isn't it just gorgeous! The yarn is so plush and soft. And Eli loves it. I'll post pictures when I'm finished with it all.

After that I'm knitting a top for Mom and this...

...for my niece Helen. And I found a beautiful little girl's silk summer dress pattern. I think I might knit a pair for my cousins Makenzie and Analeigh.

I've been tagged!

2008-02-04T11:50:00.001-06:00

Erin tagged me today in honor of Valentine's Day. I would pass the tag, but I don't know anyone else who blogs. Anyway, I'm supposed to post a clip of my favorite movie. My all time fave movie is French Kiss with Meg Ryan and Kevin Klein. This is the cutest scene. (Don't let the first couple seconds throw you off.)

Laissez les bon temps rouler!

2008-02-03T15:13:00.000-06:00

"Let the good times roll" for those of you who didn't grow up in Mobile. Yes, last night we went to Mardi Gras! The MoT's (Mystics of Time) rolled last night. They're generally considered the biggest parade of the season and have always been my favorite, what with the dragons - and they always have neat themes. So we met up with my Mom and her crew and took Brayden to his first Mardi Gras. Brayden got several stuffed animals (a coveted prize, they're sparsely thrown) and I got a rose (yet another rarely thrown and desirable throw) while I was up on Eli's shoulders. Aside from that we got lots of beads and a couple moonpies. Here's some highlights from the evening.

We got there about 45 minutes early to stake out a good spot. Here's Brayden chillin' and watching the vendors roll by.

Here's a couple shots of everyone hanging around just before the parade started.

And now the parade...

The MoT Emblem float.

The title float for this year's theme.

One of the Grand Marshals.

Verdean. (The dragons are the trademark of the MoT's and this one rolls in the parades every year.

Another dragon and a couple of the floats.

And here's Brayden playing with the spoils.

So all in all it was a good night. I had fun learning how to use my camera at night and we all had fun dancing and shouting and taking turns holding Brayden up on our shoulders. We ate lots of very good and very greasy food. (I could very nearly feel my arteries clogging up.) I'm sure my Mom got a few good shots I'll add later.

Picture Fest

2008-01-28T11:52:00.000-06:00

So, I've been taking lots of pictures since the arrival of my new toy! So I thought I'd do a big post of pictures.

First off, here's some of my little man. Isn't he just a doll! And the hair! He woke up like that and it was too cute for me to brush out.

Clint came over yesterday morning and we spent the entire day working on the nursery. We got all the trim painted and everything else touched up. And we got the new carpet cut and into the room. Tonight we'll hang the border and secure the carpet and I can move in furniture! Here's some shots of our work yesterday.

Once we got the carpet in the room I let Brayden in to check things out. I got several cute shots of him toddling around his new bedroom!

And finally one of him with Clint. We love our Paw Paw!

Brayden's Walking!

2008-01-26T20:57:00.000-06:00

I know I said that a couple weeks ago, but he's given up crawling as of tonight. We were at my Mother's when he started walking around like it was nothing. And he didn't crawl at all for the three hours we were there! He was even carrying around big boxes as he walked. Yay little man!

Über Funny Moment

2008-01-26T11:13:00.000-06:00

So, this morning Brayden decided that he wanted to wake up early. Mom was so not ready to get up yet. So I took him into the living room and put on a movie and went back to sleep on the couch. I woke up 40 minutes later to a mess. I had [stupidly] left his oatmeal cereal on the coffee table. Well, Brayden found it and took the lid off and dumped it all out onto the floor. When I woke up, I found him sitting in the middle of a pile of cereal, grabbing little fistfuls and sticking it in his mouth. He just looked at me like "Don't worry Mom, I found my own breakfast." It was too funny. I got video of it, but I really wish I had thought to grab my camera before I cleaned it all up.

Romantic Getaways

2008-01-24T10:30:00.000-06:00

Eli and I have decided to take a mini romantic getaway. Note that this is the first time we've ever done anything romantic like this in the nearly four years we have known each other. It's actually kind of sad that we haven't. But now is the perfect time. Brayden is very nearly at a stage where I can feel comfortable leaving him for a night and knowing he won't feel abandoned and our tax return is coming in soon, so this will be the only time we'll have the financial resources to do something for ourselves. I actually got the idea from Erin's blog. She got a comment from a lady who runs a b&b in Virginia, and that got me thinking. So I went online and found a charming historic little bed & breakfast nearby. So we'll drop little man at my mother's one Saturday afternoon in a few weeks and go out for the evening and spend the night at this little b&b. Then we'll spend the next morning lazing around and then head out to do something together until we have to go get Brayden. I'm really excited! The house is absolutely beautiful and it's not terribly expensive. We may actually make a thing of it every few months. Here's a link to the site. Kate Shepherd Bed & Breasfast

More Milestones and Mom's New Toy

2008-01-22T13:32:00.000-06:00

So, first the new milestone. Brayden has put himself to sleep the past two nights in a row! This is really exciting for us. Especially if he can keep it up. I still have to be there for half an hour or so to help him wind down, but that's fine with me. We can just sit in his crib and play or read until he's ready to go to sleep. It's really good quality time. But I cannot tell you how excited I am to not have to stand there leaning over his crib while he drifts off. In fact, night before last, I went in there to check on him expecting him to still be awake, only to find that he'd pulled the blanket up over himself and fallen asleep! It was too cute. The night before that he would have fallen asleep on his own, but when I walked in there he had the pillow over his head and it just made me too nervous to leave him like that.

I'm finishing up Brayden's room this week! I have the chair rail hung and caulked. I'm going in there in a little bit to sand everything down and touch up the walls where the caulk smeared. Later I'll go get some painter's tape so I can paint the rail and the baseboards. Then all that's left is the border and the carpet! Yay! The end is in sight.

So, Mom's new toy. My FIL has been in Florida for over a week and is on his way home today. On his way through Mobile, he stopped and dropped this off for me.

He bought me a camera! I'm going to sit down with the manual tonight after baby's in bed and learn how to use the thing. I'm really excited. It'll be a while before I can start using it to make any money, but it's a big step in that direction!

Another Milestone!

2008-01-16T20:15:00.000-06:00

I know I've posted more in the last week than I have in the last month, but so much has been happening. I went to the bookstore last Thursday night and, on a whim, bought a book on Baby Sign Language. After reading through it I realized what a wonderful thing this would be for us. So Friday we started working on about a dozen signs. They say that a baby his age just starting to learn will sign their first sign in a week or two. Sure enough, tonight he made his first sign! I am so proud of him! We were at my mother's house and he grabbed Clint's vitamin water. He tried to take the cap off to drink it, and when that didn't work, he made the sign for MORE. I wasn't too sure at first that it wasn't a coincidence. So I gave him a sip and put the lid back on. Immediately he said MORE. And he kept doing it each time he wanted another sip. Yay Brayden! I'm so excited. Hopefully more signs will follow soon. I'll be sure to keep you all updated!

~Liz

Little man is walking!

2008-01-16T15:50:00.000-06:00

I know it's a little after the fact, but he officially started walking on Monday. Not that he hasn't been taking steps for some time -- since November to be exact. But it's always a couple steps here, a few steps there. Usually between the couch and coffee table. Sometimes he'll start off into the middle of the room only to realize, three or four steps in, that he'd get there faster crawling and that would be that. But no, Monday he let loose and walked! He was standing at the coffee table and headed for his little house. He just let go and toddled on over. It was probably a good ten to fifteen steps. He was so focused on his destination that he never realized he wasn't using his preferred method of travel. So there it is, my baby is walking! Heaven help me when he gives up crawling. Note to self: must buy more baby gates.

2008-01-14T10:05:00.000-06:00

So, fun stuff happening over here. First off, I've decided to take care of my friend Christy's two kids during the day. She just moved back to Mobile and is still looking for a job. But once she starts work, I'll have her 4-year-old Andrew and her 20-month-old Ginger most days. She said she couldn't afford to pay a day care, but she could afford a babysitter, and I'm only too happy to help out. They're really sweet kids and it will be really good for Brayden to start learning to be around other little ones. Which means I have to finish the nursery so I have a playroom for them. You can tell how upset I am that I finally have a reason to get my nursery finished NOW! It's about time and I'm really excited.

Oh, and Clint got Brayden carpet for his room! Yay! The carpet in there now is this horrid maroon, tight weave, office carpet. And it hasn't been replaced in forever. And the last tenant had dogs, which I understand she let go to the potty inside on the carpet. Totally gross! And I can tell you for sure that my landlord did not have the carpets cleaned. So, anyway, Clint's working on a job painting a room for some [wealthy] people. They put new carpet in he room he's painting and they said Clint could have the old carpet. It's beautiful! It's a soft green and it's nice and plush. And it was just made in March of last year, so it still looks brand new! I'm really excited that he'll have nice carpet to crawl around and play on.

I've started myself a neat little project. I read all these baby magazines each month and I always see some neat product or a cool craft idea or just a really great article I want to hold on to. So I've been saving all the magazines to reference. But I read 3 a month, times the last 18 months, and my stack of magazines is rather big. Not to mention I have no idea what is in each that I might want to see again. So, thus my project. I'm going back through each magazine and cutting out anything I want to keep and I'm putting the pages in a binder in those clear page protectors. And I've organized the binder into different sections. So now I have a nifty little reference guide and I'll clear up that floor space in my little storage area. When I get finished, I'll post pictures. It's really very neat.

Eli had drill this past weekend. We were really excited that he was nearing the end of his commitment to the Air Force. His unit has gotten so bad that he just hates to have to go anymore. He swore in in May of 2004, so this May will mark his four year anniversary and mean his status would change to inactive reserve meaning he would no longer have to go one weekend a month and two weeks a year. If he had signed a four-year contract like we thought. Unfortunately he found out yesterday that he signed a six-year contract. He is devastated. He was so close to the end and now he's looking down two more years of misery. I feel so bad for him. It wouldn't be so bad if his NCOIC hadn't transferred into another AFSC and left TSgt Parker to become the new NCOIC. Parker doesn't think very highly of Eli. And on top of that, Parker and Eli are the only 2E2s in the unit. Which makes Eli second NCO in command by default even though he's only a Sr Airman. Which means he will likely have to go through NCO training sometime in the next year. It all just kind of bites monkey butt.

Well, anyway, I need to go do the dishes and laundry, of which I have a massive pile (laundry, not dishes).

~Liz

I heart my Swiffer!

2008-01-12T14:03:00.000-06:00

So this was one of my Christmas presents from my Mom. I love it!

I loathe using a broom. I can just see it sending up dirt and dust into the air to land back on my clean floor. And vacuuming hard floors just doesn't get up the fine grit that later gets my feet dirty. Enter the Sweep & Vac. I love it! (Have I said that yet?) It's great at getting up small pieces of things and leaves my floors feeling all nice and clean. And I love that it can get under furniture where the vacuum can't reach. This is my next purchase for myself.

In the mean time, I bought myself this.

The Libman Wonder Mop! I hate traditional mops. After a few uses the threads look so nasty I figure I'm putting as much dirt onto the floor as I'm mopping up. You just can't clean them well. At least this one I can toss in the washing machine every so often.

So, on another note, (and be prepared to laugh at me...it's okay) I've created a Mommy star chart. You know, like the ones you use on preschoolers and young kids to reward them for doing chores and stuff. Yeah, Eli laughed, too. You see, I'm terrible about keeping the baby on a schedule and keeping the house clean like I should. So I created a weekly schedule for myself. And every day I stay on schedule, I either get one or two stars depending on how well I did. And after so many stars I get to go buy myself something small. I like that it's going to give me an excuse to start pampering myself a little.

Well, I'm sure I have more to share, but I need to go tackle the dishes and some laundry. Love you all!

~Liz

Happy New Years!

2008-01-03T21:26:00.000-06:00

Happy New Year to you all. We've had a lot of fun the past week. My uncle and his new wife and his two kids came down last Friday and were here until yesterday. It was a blast. Tyler is only six years younger than me and we were the best of friends growing up. He brought his new girlfriend Abbey with him. We played games and hung out all week. Brayden had an absolute blast with all the new people to play with.

I finally finished working on Gary and Sharon's wedding pictures and got to give them to her. That was really nice. I'm glad I got to help them out like that. They paid someone $300 to photograph their wedding and the girl did a terrible job. She shot the wedding on film and most of her shots were just unsalvagable. I only used her photos when I had no choice. But between my mother, my sister, and myself, I managed to get most of the pictures I needed. I had a lot of fun working on it. Here's some of what I did. I know I'm no professional, but I'm really proud of how they turned out. The words on the last photo are one of the Seven Hebrew Blessings and the glass is the one Gary smashed with his foot at the end of the Blessings. (Sharon is Jewish.)

Merry Christmas!

2007-12-25T22:05:00.000-06:00

Well, I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas. We did! It was so much fun. We got up and everyone gathered at my mother's to open presents. We decided not to do our own Christmas here since Eli and I already knew what Brayden was getting and he's just not old enough this year to be excited. Plus I love having a big get-together. It's tons of fun to pass out the presents one-by-one and watch everyone open things. By far my favorite part about Christmas is giving gifts. I really do love it. I spend a lot of time and thought on each present and I love watching people's faces as they open their gift. This year I made a recipe box for all the adult women (and by proxy, the men) complete with over 100 recipes. They all loved it. I knitted my brother a beanie in his high school's colors - blue and gold - and had it say Panthers across the front. I put bricks in the box with it to throw him off. It was really fun to watch his face when he went to pick it up! For my sister, I am arranging a Glamour Shots-style photo shoot with my father-in-law. She found the pictures from the Glamour Shots Mom and I did ten years ago and wanted her own.
My great-grandmother came back this year to give a gift from Beyond. She does that every few years. There is this beautiful, heavy glass unicorn bust nightlight that always sat on her nightstand when I was little. And all her kids and the grandkids and I slept over and fell asleep to its glow at some point when we were little. It was given to me at Christmas years ago when I was in high school. I found it in a box a few weeks ago and I don't really have anywhere to put it that's safe from destructo-baby, so I passed it on.
Brayden, of course, got positively showered with gifts, both from us and from my mother. There will be no bored baby in my house any longer! In fact, he got so many, I'm going to have to rotate them so I don't overwhelm him. But I'm really excited about all the things he got. Eli and I got some cool stuff, too. Eli got lots of books and book-related items. I guess everyone got the message he likes to read. :) I got a slowcooker and a cheese grater and a sweep & vac and a few other odds and ends. I'm really excited about the sweep & vac...now I can clean my floors while the baby is asleep! And I want to be buried with my cheese grater. Seriuosly. I'm telling you, there's a whole narrative about my trials and tribulations with cheese graters. I was given one when I got married, but I didn't really start to cook until we moved back to Mobile. Since then, I've made lots of things that required shredded cheddar cheese. This cheese grater bites. It's just a little flat grater on a handle and was really meant for harder cheeses...the holes are tiny! So grating cheese takes for bloody ever! I complain every time I use the dern thing. Well, my cousin got wind of my disgust for the cheese grater. She's a distributor for Pampered Chef, so she bought me their cheese grater for my last anniversary. You're thinking "how wonderful!" right? I thought so, too, until I used the thing. It's one of those kinds they use at Olive Garden to grate Parmesan onto your salad. Great for hard cheeses, but still, I complain every time I grate cheddar. It hurts your hand to use and the cheese gets stuck in the barrel and it's nigh on impossible to clean. I have grown to hate it. So I asked for a plain, old fashioned, four-sided, stand-up cheese grater. I know, it's like a $5 utensil, but you have to understand that it's just not an expense I could justify seeing as how I already had two cheese graters that by all accounts do the job necessary. (I really must get better at indulging myself in small items that will make my life easier and happier.) Anyway, long story short, I got one!!! YAY!!! I very nearly cried. Seriously. It's my favorite Christmas present! (Kind of pathetic, I know...but it makes me happy.) Erin told me that my Christmas list sucked, what with it all consisting of practical items and no fun stuff, but really, I'm just tickled pink with all my new practical gadgets. And next week, Mom is giving me the money to go out and buy my diaper bag that I've been eyeing for months! (Yet another $30 I couldn't justify spending on myself but that will make my life easier. Plus, it is too darn cute!!!)
After presents we all sat and chatted and played around until lunch was finished. My mother loves to cook and she always makes a huge Christmas dinner. This year was certainly no exception. We spent the whole day over there eating good food and goofing off. It was just a really nice day all around. I hope you all had a great day, and I was thinking about every one of you today. Merry Christmas!

It's Beginning to Feel a Lot Like Christmas...

2007-12-21T10:43:00.000-06:00

...around here. I finally have all of my holiday shopping done (well, short of one present for Brayden, but that's it). And I just finished wrapping all the presents I have here at the house. I still have a couple that won't be delivered until Christmas eve. I was forced to order them since none of the stores had them in stock. Wouldn't you know it, I went out last night and they were all in stock again. So I hate that I'm paying shipping for things that I could go buy right now, but oh well. I wanted to make sure he got them. He's getting a ton of stuff. Well, a ton of stuff by our standards considering he hasn't had new toys since the few he got on his birthday, and before that, none since last Christmas. So I'm really excited to be able to get him some new things. He has been getting so frustrated around here lately. He's played with all his toys so much he's just downright bored with them. Well, he won't be bored for many months now, at least. I am amazed at how hard it is for Santa to find stocking stuffers for a toddler. I mean, I can't just fill it up with candy (although I...I mean Santa...will be supplementing with candy...I figure Mom & Dad can eat it :) ). But I managed to find several little things that should do the trick. I wish I had more money to spend on family. We only spent money on the kids. I spent time on the adults' presents. Everyone's getting the same thing and I hope they like it. Well, Brayden and I are headed out to return some things. I overspent and bought some stuff I didn't need, so it's all going back today. After that I'm putting up my tree! Yes, I'm just now putting up a tree. But I figured I'd rather have it up longer on the back end of the holiday than put it up too soon and go crazy trying to keep Brayden away from it before Christmas. That and buying late in the season means a huge discount on the price of the tree!

Goody Bag

2007-11-29T12:36:00.000-06:00

Okay, so I've totally been ignoring my blog. But there's lots been going on around here, so I've got lots to post about. Here goes.

First and most exciting, little man is walking!!! He'll only take a couple steps at a time and then only when he's forced to, but he's doing it so well! We've only had a couple episodes where he's fallen on his knees. Now I wish I had a third hand so I could take pictures while I hold my arms out for him. Next thing I know he's going to be running around the house getting into things faster than I can clean up the last mess he made. *sigh* My little man is growing up so fast!

Brayden is also starting to night wean himself! Yay! I can't tell you how excited I am. And it's mostly excitement for myself! :) He's nursing less at night in general. And he's not needing to nurse back to sleep every time he wakes up. In fact, I find myself just snuggling him, or even rolling away all together. Sometimes that stops his squirming and lets him settle back into sleep better. And other times he needs to nurse and that's fine, too. I'm just glad he's doing it in his own time...and that that time has finally come. I can now visualize at the end of the ever shortening tunnel the day I can lay him down in his crib and know that he'll sleep there at least most of the night. Eli's about ready to throw a party to celebrate. Although I admit I'll really miss waking up in the night and seeing his sweet little head resting on my shoulder with that look of total contentment on his face. And the feel of his breath on my face. *sigh* Sometimes I think this baby thing is ending way too fast. I'm already figuring how many months/years of decent sleep I need before I can work on number 2!

On a me note, I have volunteered to coordinate our church's annual White Christmas reception. Every year about a week before Christmas we have a White Christmas program, which is always just spectacular. It's a big celebration involving all the adult, youth, and children's choirs, both adult bell choirs, a mini orchestra, and lots of scripture and Christmas carols. And following the program is always a big reception full of holiday decorations and more finger foods and sweets than you can even imagine. It always felt like a really special night to me growing up and this year I'm there to help plan it all out. We had our first logistical meeting for it this morning and I'm really excited.

I hated that I didn't make a Thanksgiving post. But I took my four day holiday and enjoyed the bejesus out of it. Both our families abandoned us this year (well, abandoned is a strong word...they just went off to Tennessee and Texas and we couldn't really afford to go I suppose, so we were left at home). So I cooked dinner for just the two-and-a-half of us. Although you would never know it by the amount of food on my table come 5 o'clock! I made ham, turkey, homemade mashed potatoes, stuffing, giblet gravy, green been casserole, Pumpkin Gooey Butter cake (OMG Amazing!), and deviled eggs and I bought a chocolate pie and a pecan pie. Needless to say I still have half of it in my fridge! I spent the whole day cooking, but it was tons of fun. I may do it again next year, but I'll be sure to have people over to enjoy it since anyone who knows us knows Eli hardly touched any of it. Brayden on the other hand had a blast! I gave him ham, stuffing, and mashed potatoes and he ate it like it was going out of style. In fact, he grabbed a huge handful of the potatoes and spent ten minutes just nibbling off it! It was too cute.

I guess there's not a whole lot else happening over here. Brayden's a little fussy after his shots on Tuesday. We're going tromping through the woods this weekend to find a Christmas tree and I'll spent the weekend decorating. And then come next Thursday, Eli reports to Biloxi for a week and a half for their ORI. Heaven help them all if they don't pass. Cause if they fail, the General doesn't get his promotion from one star to two and everyone knows that [misery] rolls downhill.

Well, that's about it. I'll make an effort to not wait so long to post again.

Zoobie Pets

2007-11-16T17:22:00.000-06:00

So we went to Fairhope for a few hours today. We had a lot of fun walking around and going in stores. We found the seriously cutest toy store over there. It's called Fantasy Island Toys. I remember when they had a store here in Mobile many years ago. They're one of those toy stores that just has all the coolest, neatest toys. Eli and I enjoyed playing with what they had more than Brayden did. I found some really neat stuff and Brayden picked out a Christmas present for himself. But by far the coolest thing there was this thing called a Zoobie. I so have to get one for Brayden and one for every kid I know. It's a plush animal in the shape of an alligator or a hippotomus or a giraffe etc. that flattens out to make a pillow and then zips open and reveals a blanket. But it's not a tiny blanket like those things that are half blanket half animal. We're talking about a 5 foot by 3 foot blanket! How cool is that?! I'd post pictures of them, but you can't download them from the site. But here...go check it out. www.zoobiepets.com

That's One Small Step For Baby

2007-11-14T10:50:00.001-06:00

Yes, you're hearing it here first. My baby took his first unassisted step!!! It was quick, but he did it! We were at my mom's and he was going from one couch to the other. Normally he reaches out to grab the next couch before stepping over. But this time, he took a step before he grabbed on - hands in the air! I'm so proud of him! I scooped him up and kissed him all over. I'm sure he thought I was nuts, but I don't care. Go little man!

Hoof and Mouth Disease?

2007-11-13T11:01:00.000-06:00

So, we're a bunch of pathetic people around here. After much going back and forth (is it strep? an allergic reaction to amoxicillin?) we now know that Brayden has Hand, Foot, and Mouth disease. (Not hoof and mouth disease like my brother asked.) And guess what? I've caught it. And it's miserable. I know why the ped thought it was strep. I looked in my mouth and it's scary. I have little sores and blisters all over the place. No wonder little man had trouble sleeping. At least he's acting like he feels better. They're keeping him on the amoxil just in case, but he's smiling and playful again. Just in time for me to feel miserable. I spent all day yesterday on the couch sleeping. I just kept putting in movies for Brayden. Around 5 he finally demanded company, so I went to my mother's and let my brother and sister play with him while I curled up on their couch. The worst part of this is the headache. It's debilitating and it won't go away. Motrin will keep it down for a while, but it insists on coming back. We're just all sick and pathetic around here. I talked to my sister-in-law this morning and their whole house is sick, too. Anyway, I'm going to lay back down. I promise I'll post something more interesting next time.

Yucky pink stuff...

2007-11-09T21:24:00.000-06:00

So, my little man is sick. He woke up at 3 this morning with a fever of 103º and it's been pretty persistent since. I finally got in to see the doctor at 5:50 this evening and found out he has strep throat. My poor baby! His throat is so raw that when she swabbed it, the swab came out with a drop of blood on it. She said it's pretty rare for a baby this young to get strep. I just feel so bad for him. He's been burning up all day. Even his toes have been hot. He was like a little heater in my bed all night last night. I hope the antibiotics clear it up soon.

Hickory Dickory Dock...

2007-11-08T21:20:00.000-06:00

I finally got the pictures of Halloween today from Brandon. Isn't Brayden the cutest little mouse?!

And I love Eli as the Big Cheese. =) I can't believe he let me put that on him. He didn't actually wear it out of the house, but hey, at least I got cute pictures. I wish you could see his full costume. The bottom had a corner cut out to look like Brayden had nibbled off it.

Michelle and I had tons of fun doing her makeup. I wish I had gotten a good picture at the beginning of the night when her makeup was fresh. By the time this one was taken, most of her glitter had worn off.

Anyway, we had tons of fun. Brayden did really well wearing his ears. And he loved the candy he got to eat later that night.

Hotglue and Handsaws

2007-10-29T19:07:00.000-05:00

Lots happening around here. I've finished my Halloween centerpiece for my dining room table. I got the idea from Parents magazine and they were a lot of fun to make. Here's a pic.

Aren't they too cute! And I love that they'll last longer than a carved pumpkin.

I've also been working on the nursery. I've been sitting around and waiting for the men to get it done. I'm old-fashioned in that I feel like anything that involves tools is a man's job. Well, it's been four months and I'm finally fed up with waiting. So I even though I've never done anything like this, grabbed my tape measure and my pencil and my saw and I rolled up my sleeves and I started cutting chair rail. The walls measure roughly 30 feet and I ordered 32 feet of chair rail. Everyone said I didn't have enough. That I needed EIGHT extra feet. That I would have to place an order and pay $25 for eight more feet. Well, I'd like you all to know that I cut all my chair rail and it fits perfectly and I had OVER A FOOT left over! I am all that is über! I rock! I am a carpentry god! (Can you tell I'm really proud of myself?) So here's pics of my chair rail, waiting to be hung.

I'll have this baby his own room by the weekend!

2007-10-27T10:56:00.000-05:00

I realized that I should have added more details about Brayden's first word. Eli and I were still laying in bed and Brayden was making his way around it from one nightstand to the other, thoroughly enjoying playing with the things on them. Unfortunately, on Daddy's nightstand was a can of soda. Which, of course, little man had spilled. I pulled him away from it and wiped his hand off and proceeded to start sopping it up. When he reached out to try and play in the puddle I pushed his hand away and told him 'no, sir'. And he told me 'no'. Very breathy. I didn't even realize he had said it. It was Eli who said Brayden had said his first word. I just shrugged it off. After all, what does Eli really know? But I returned from getting Brayden clothes from the laundry room and Eli said he tried to take something from Brayden and he said it to him three times. So there it is, the story of my baby's first word. It's very cute. He says it in such a way it's almost like he doesn't even realize he's saying it.

No, Mommy!

2007-10-27T10:46:00.000-05:00

I've become one of those parents. The ones I used to look down on when I heard them say it. And now it has happened to me. My son said his first word! YAY! But I have to say that my reaction to this glorious event is rather selfish in nature. I was hoping his first word would be Dada, or maybe Mama. But alas, this is not to be. No, Brayden's first word was 'no'. This is understandable from a logical point of view. After all, it is very much the word that he hears most. And for that, I am embarrassed. I've been working on disciplining myself to say 'not for Brayden' more and 'no' less. But hey, at least the kid is talking! This is a huge relief to Eli and me. We've been vaguely concerned about why Brayden has waited so long to talk. And he's been so into his own made-up language we thought perhaps something was wrong. Maybe he wasn't comprehending what he hears properly or perhaps not making the link between sounds he hears and sounds he makes. But this fear has now been put to rest. So I imagine I can get over my selfish need for his first word to have been something more meaningful and sentimental long enough to toss him in the air and tell him how wonderful he is and rejoice in all the excitement that should rightfully go along with such an event. My baby said his first word!!!!!

Mommy Moments

I {Heart} Faces - Fix-it Friday

Happy Thanksgiving

Yummy Pasta

Fettuccine Alfredo, Roasted Cauliflower, and Pumpkin Muffins

Flank Steak & Buttercream Icing

Chicken Scallopine and Blueberry Baked French Toast

Tres Leches Cake

Dinner Menu

Roasted Asparagus

Friday Night for Dinner

My New Cooking Resolve

House

Brayden Turns 3!!!

The Aviary

Happy Father's Day

New Wardrobe!!!

I really should update

Surprise! What a sweetie!

The Moments I Treasure

Tag

50 Things About Me...26-50

50 Things About Me...1-25

My Sweet Little Monkey Man

Sneak Peek

Christmas is Coming!.....in January?

Home at last in West Virginia

Introducing Baby Yoda!

If I Had A Million Dollars... Part 6

If I Had A Million Dollars... Part 5

If I Had A Million Dollars... Part 4

If I Had A Million Dollars... Part 3

If I Had A Million Dollars... Part 2

If I Had A Million Dollars...

Gymboree Day

Catch-Up Catch-All

Funny Moments

Monkey Toes

Addition

Brayden's Birthday

Photo Shoot

Happy Anniversary

Photo Fest

Brayden's First Haircut

All Things New & Exciting

Little Man

Photo Shoot

Hodge Podge

Tag Questions

Baby Booties

Mother's Day Continued

Photo Shoot

Tag!

Growing Moments

A Step Up in the World

Bit of an Update

104.8

Happy Easter!

So much is happening...I think

What kind of yarn are you?

Photo Fest

Romance

Hi, my name is Liz...

Knitting

Happy Valentine's Day

Lé Nursery

Ladybug

Update in Liz Land

I've been tagged!

Laissez les bon temps rouler!

Picture Fest

Brayden's Walking!

Über Funny Moment

Romantic Getaways

More Milestones and Mom's New Toy

Another Milestone!

Little man is walking!

I *heart* my Swiffer!

Happy New Years!

Merry Christmas!

I heart my Swiffer!