The Comings and Goings...

Our Little Baxter

2011-09-01T21:42:00.000-07:00

Oh Baxter. You are 7 months old and a bundle of joy. Here are a few of some highlights:

- You give most people this big, open mouthed smile (see picture below)

- When I am on the floor "wrestling" with Isaac and Lorelai, you don't want to be left out. You army crawl your way over and roll on top of me, or mess with my hair. The other day you managed to give me a bloody nose. Impressive!

- You are currently imitating noises, so a lot of the time you will say, "Ba ba ba ba" and the shape your mouth makes is REALLY cute.

- When I pick you up, I pretty much want to squeeze you because you are so darn sweet!

He's Full Of It!

2011-08-19T14:53:00.000-07:00

"I gotta poop! I thought that was going to be a fart!" - Isaac, after he backed up against to fart on me.

"Mommy, did you like your wedding? Do you love daddy? Did you make your dreams come true?" - Isaac, while watching "Say Yes To The Dress" with me.

"Mommy, please don't ever make this again." - Isaac, after I made Curried-Chicken Potpie

"I'll miss my Booberry (Baxter) but I'll be perfectly fine with him." - Isaac, when I told him Baxter was going to go to Nana and Papa's

Birthday Money!

2011-08-15T20:48:00.000-07:00

For his 4th birthday, Isaac got $4 from his Auntie M. He found it again in the card this morning so I told him we could go to Walmart and he could pick out a toy with his birthday money. He was all over this!

When we got to Walmart we headed to the toy aisle. Along the way Isaac saw some Angry Bird plush animals, he pointed them out and said he liked them, but I had to tell him they were "out of his budget" because they were $8. He says, "Yeah, and I have $4, right?" Once we got to the toy department we started at the Lego aisle. He would see something he liked and say, "Is that in my budget?" I really wanted to pitch in a couple dollars so he could get a Lego kit, but decided that would defeat the purpose. We had no luck in the Lego aisle so we continued on, he kept looking and asking if something was "in his budget." He was very careful about what he wanted to buy. Eventually we made it to the Cars 2 aisle and he very excitedly declared, "I want one of these!" So we picked one of each and he laid them all on the ground and then picked..."Grem"- one of the bad guys. I must say, I was a little surprised at this, but not wanting him to question his decision, I didn't ask more than once, "Are you sure this is the one you want?"

Our checker was very sweet and understanding when he very slowly, dollar by dollar handed her his $4. She put the car in his very own bag with his receipt and then handed him his change, which was also met with a good amount of excitement. It was a very sweet first shopping experience. He's already planning how he is going to spend his birthday money next year.

Quotes...

2011-07-25T11:42:00.001-07:00

"Sister, your stroller is broken so it's not going to be played with for 100 weeks." - Isaac

"Oh darn it! It's messy!" - Lorelai, when she walked into the toy closet

Me: "Lorelai, time for bed."; Lorelai: "Darn it!"

When I Grow Up...

2011-04-28T21:16:00.001-07:00

Today on the way to preschool Isaac informed me that when he grew up he was going to be part of "Backstreet Boys." I'm thinking that might look a little something like this...

Lorelai Lynn

2011-04-26T22:32:00.001-07:00

Now isn't she just too cute...

Things I Learned...

2011-04-25T14:47:00.000-07:00

I learned a couple thing this past two weeks...

1. I am not a morning person. I DO NOT like waking up before 7:30pm. Therefore, waking up to exercise at 5:30am lasted all of two mornings.

2. I have 100 million things to do around the house, so when the children are napping, the LAST thing I want to do is exercise.

3. The summer clothes I need to fit into, still do not fit. And, since I am not made of money, I can't afford to go out and buy all new summer clothes.

And this leads me to #4...

4. I am a gym girl. The only way this body of mine is ever going to slightly resemble it's pre-baby size is if I get my booty out of the house and go to a gym to workout. Conveniently, I've been making a monthly donation to a local gym but have not graced it's doors in 7+ months, so actually going to a gym to exercise just required me to swallow my shame and go back.

I did that this morning. Went to the gym, kids in tow, walked to the counter, told them I had a membership but had not been in a LLLOONNNGGG time and did not remember my membership number. The girl was quite nice, giggled at my admission, took my picture (liked her a little less at this point) and welcomed me back. And back I am. I am vowing to myself to get to the gym at least 3 times this week. I don't feel this should be too difficult for me, I am used to going to a gym to exercise, just have to get back with the program.

In The Kitchen

2011-04-21T21:40:00.000-07:00

Lorelai and I had a chance to spend some time in the kitchen this afternoon.

First, she helped me make dinner...

Please excuse the attire and the one-eyed pirate look she has going on...

Then, we made some birds nest cookies...

"Let's eat them mommy!"

The finished product!

I wish someone had been there to take a picture of the two of us together. We had on matching aprons, compliments of G.G. (Great Grandma Glee). When I put the apron on, Lorelai asked me who gave it to her so I told her, she responded, "G.G. loves me."

Potty On The Brain

2011-04-07T14:51:00.001-07:00

"The bear is going potty!" - Lorelai

In My Free Time

2011-03-30T22:50:00.000-07:00

Our MOPS Summit (Leadership Conference) is this weekend and for the Friday Night Girls Night, our group is providing the desserts. I was making some cookies for a meeting earlier in the week, so I just decided to make the rest of the sugar cookies for one of the desserts on Friday. I didn't want to just make plain old sugar cookies, so I googled "MOPS Cookies" and came across a blog with pictures of some cookies with the MOPS logo. Thankfully I had the heart shape cookie cutter, so then it was just a matter of copying the frosting. Thanks to Melissa for the royal icing recipe. I think, for the most part, they turned out pretty good. Now I'm anxious to try and make some cookies for something else! :)

I'm Growing Up!

2011-03-21T14:28:00.000-07:00

Isaac just yelled from the other room, "Mommy! I have hair on my arms!" I tell him, "Come here, let me see!" So he comes up to me, looks all over his arm for the hair, spots it and says, "See! Right there!" I say, "Yes!" To which he says, "Ooohh, I'm growing up!"

Why Not The Parking Lot??

2011-03-21T13:45:00.000-07:00

This morning as the kids and I were leaving Winco, Isaac declares he needs to go to the bathroom. Having a cart full of groceries and the other two kids and not really knowing what else to do, I told him we'd go to the car, unload the groceries than go back in. He starts screaming/crying, "I have to go so bad, so bad..." We hurry to the car and I start to unload the groceries, the whole time he's carrying on. I get all the groceries out and go to grab Lorelai when I feel something warm on my leg and hear Isaac say, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to pee on you!" You guessed it! That little boy had dropped his drawers and was peeing in the Winco parking lot....ugh. I quickly look around to see if anyone had seen, an older gentleman may have, I tell Isaac to pull up his pants (!) and to stand by the car; then, when I'm sure he's not looking, I laugh...what else could I do...I guess in his mind, if he can pee in the backyard, why not the parking lot??

She's A Character!

2011-03-02T13:37:00.000-08:00

The other day I made Lorelai half of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for lunch. After taking it apart and eating one side of the sandwich, she informs me she is ready for a cookie. Since she hadn't actually finished her lunch I told her she couldn't have a cookie until she had done so. Her response to me was to pick up all the pieces of sandwich off her plate, hold them in her hands above her head, look down at her plate and exclaim, "I DID IT!" I had to tell her that just because she took the sandwich off her plate, didn't actually mean she had finished her lunch. It was quite funny though!

We Have A Baby!

2011-02-10T21:27:00.000-08:00

We have excitedly welcomed to our family Baxter Leroy Baumann! He is beautiful and so far seems quite the content little guy. He came into the world weighing 8lbs 10oz and 21 inches long; he also has QUITE the birth story. Below is the birth story from Aaron's perspective, my version of the events is MUCH longer. Something to note, is that my original due date was January 30th, so by this time I'm uncomfortable and pretty ready for the baby to be here!

Rachel had an appointment with the midwife at 4:30pm on Friday, February 4th. Everything was fine, but she was only at 2 cm. The midwife said that she thought the due date (which wasn't originally set by her) may actually have been February 6th. So, Rachel essentially left that appointment thinking "well, this could be another week."

That night at about 10pm she started having some contractions. Nothing big, maybe 10 minutes apart and they only lasted for about an hour. Eh, it could be nothing. So, we went to bed.

Rachel woke up at about 5:30 and got out of bed. This wasn't really a cause for concern for me. She had done it a few times recently. Back pains made it hard for her to get comfortable, so sometimes she would get up and just go read a book by the fireplace.

At about 6:45am Rachel came in and said "if you want to take a shower before your baby is born, you'd better do it now." I took a quick shower and got dressed. By that time her contractions were getting pretty constant and intense. We finally knew that we had to get moving. We called the midwife and I quickly got everything together. Rachel was moving very slowly, and not moving at all during her contractions. I kept poking my head in on Rachel and saying "Lucy! This is no time to be playing games!" We finally got in the car by about 8:05.

THIS IS THE FUN PART. Not many times does a man have a decent excuse to drive with purpose. Pop on the emergency flashers and just start swerving in and out of traffic. Rachel spent the drive alternating between yelling at me for driving erratically and saying "Shannon's not going to make it." Averaging about 60 MPH, we made it to to my in-laws at

8:15am.

I got Shannon on the phone as Geri came out to meet us at the car. Shannon told us to get Rachel into the house and have her lay on the bed to slow down the labor process. After a few contractions by the side of the car, we moved Rachel inside. Before she could get to the bed she felt her water break. She told us "bathroom" and we helped her in that direction. When we got to the bathroom, Geri said "we should probably get her pants off." I called Shannon to let her know that Rachel's water had just broke and we put her on speaker phone. My phone log tells me this was at 8:23.

Rachel got down on her hands and knees on the bathroom floor and Geri said, "you should probably switch places with me." I remember Shannon telling Rachel to "blow like blowing through a donut hole" but this baby was already on his way. I remember saying "i see the head" and then supporting his head as it came out, looking for an umbilical cord in case I needed to hook it out of the way. Rachel said "what are you doing?" I replied "It's the shoulders, hun. You just need to get the shoulders." One more push and I was holding my baby. 8:28 AM. 5 minutes after her water broke and less than 15 minutes after we pulled into the driveway.

Later, Rachel told us that she actually remembered dreaming that she was having a contraction. She probably went through 1/2 of the labor in her sleep!

Funny Isaac

2011-01-19T23:17:00.000-08:00

Aaron and Isaac were watching Alpha and Omega, a movie about two wolves who are transported to Idaho to repopulate the wolf population; during the movie Aaron tells Isaac, "They were sent there to make babies." When bedtime arrives they we're about half done with the movie. The following conversation took place:

Aaron: "Isaac, it's bedtime."
Isaac: "But I want to see them make babies."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tonight while the kids were taking their bath, together, Lorelai decided to poop in the tub, Isaac freaks out appropriately, we evacuate the tub, and start the cleaning up process. While I'm waiting for the water to drain Isaac says something about "I thought it was a toy." So I ask him "Did you touch the poop?" and he says VERY excitedly, "NO! But it was closely near me!"

Top 3 Reasons I'm Afraid...

2010-12-15T21:09:00.001-08:00

Lorelai does certain things that as an almost 2 year old are cute, but as a teenager would be terrifying. This leads me to this post on the top 3 reasons I'm afraid for when Lorelai becomes a teenager.

1. She yells "PARTY!" pretty regularly. Sure, she's talking about a tea party right now, but in 15 years...

2. One morning at breakfast Aaron was offering the kids "mock" mimosa's and she very quickly grabbed onto that word and started yelling, "MIMOSA!" Again, sure, at 2 it's cute, but in 15+ years and she's yelling "BEER!"...

3. She really enjoys getting on table tops and dancing while singing...need I say more.

I could only think of three reasons right now, but I'm quite certain there will be more...

Tablecloths and Tea

2010-11-30T20:21:00.000-08:00

This evening while we were sitting in the living room, Lorelai wanted me to spread out a blanket on the ottoman, she then handed me her "blankie" and after much chatter, was finally able to convey to me that she wanted to me do the same with it. She then turns around and says, "Where's my party?!" She wanted to have a tea party and she had wanted me to put the "tablecloth" down on the table! I do believe she has a little bit of Hoenshell in her...

Glasses for a 3 Year Old

2010-11-15T20:57:00.000-08:00

Today in the car Isaac found one of his toy die cast cars, he was very excited and wanted to know what kind of car it was. Typically, the Hot Wheels and Matchbox cars say on the bottom of the car what type it is, so I take the car, turn it over and look. This must have been a "off brand" car because it did not say, so I told Isaac, "I'm sorry buddy, but it doesn't say." The whole way home he starring at the bottom of the car and saying, "Hmm, hmmm, hmmm" and then I hear him say, "I just can't see it, I'll have to get my glasses when we get home to read it."

Dinner?

2010-11-14T21:23:00.000-08:00

Tonight, around 5:00pm Isaac comes up the stairs at Marcie and Brian's and says, "Mom, do you want to come downstairs?" and I say, "Why?" and he says,"To make dinner!" and I tell him Oma is making dinner to which he replies, "No, she's just sitting looking at the computer!" He was a little worried about where his dinner was going to come from, not realizing that there was a roast in the oven. It was very cute though!

25 Weeks and Counting...

2010-10-14T13:59:00.000-07:00

I am beginning to fear that this child will come out KNOWING that his mom and dad didn't takes pictures of him in the belly every four weeks! Seriously! I realize this is ridiculous, but I still can't help thinking it.

I am now 25 weeks, although I must admit the only reason I know that is because my midwife gave me a sheet as a "quick reference" to see how far along I am. The little baby is moving and grooving and I often feel feet and arms right around my belly button, I've got to say that's one of my favorite things about pregnancy. So far, no heartburn (knock on something!) which for me, makes me think this baby is a boy- I had no heartburn with Isaac; of course, it more likely means the baby is going to be bald, which makes me HOPE it's a boy!

We are now currently homeless, and seeing as how this baby was supposed to be born at home, would have presented a minor problem if my mom wasn't SO excited for us to have the baby at her house. I'm not quite sure how that will play out yet- mostly hoping my labor is long enough to get to my mom's house- but I'm sure it will all work out.

Can't believe I'm almost to my third trimester!

The Dreams of a Little Boy

2010-10-04T22:36:00.001-07:00

Isaac found a booklet full of everything Thomas the Tank Engine and has barely put it down long enough to sleep. And literally, I mean, he's been sleeping with it, evidence of which is below. When I went into our room tonight, this is how I found him...

Oh Yummy!

2010-09-27T21:53:00.000-07:00

I had baked a bone-in ham last week for split pea soup and the following is the recipe I used in an effort to use some of the leftover ham. The recipe actually calls for a ham steak cut into pieces, but obviously whatever ham you have will work fine.

Ham, Potato and Cheddar Cheese Gratin

2 cups water

1 ham steak, 1.5lbs, trim of fat and cut into 1-1 1/2 inch squares. (again, I just used leftover ham)

3.5lbs baking potatoes, peeled and cut into thin slices (I used red potatoes & left the skins on)

3 cups milk (I used 1.5 cups non-fat milk and 1.5 cups whole)

1/4 cup unsalted butter

6 tablespoons all purpose flour

1/2lb extra sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

1/2lb smoked cheddar cheese, shredded (I just used all sharp cheese since I was too cheap to buy the smoked)

2 tablespoons dijon mustard

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

salt and pepper to taste

In a saucepan over high heat, bring the water to a boil. Add the ham and simmer for 30 seconds. Remove from the heat and drain well. Set aside.

Oil a 9x13 baking dish. Distribute one-fourth of the potatoes evenly over the botton of the prepared dish. Distribute one-third of the ham evenly over the potatoes. Top with half of the remaining potatoes and then all of the remaining ham. Top with all the remaining potatoes, laying the slices attractively (haha!)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees (I did 400 degrees cause I was in a hurry.)

Pour the milk into a saucepan and place over medium heat, warm until small bubbles appear at the edges of the pan. Remove from heat. (I heated my milk in the microwave for 4 minutes).

In another saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Stir in the flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. (Do not brown.) Gradually stir in the hot milk and cook, stirring, until the mixture thickens, 4-5 minutes. Remove from the heat. Stir in the cheeses, mustard, cayenne pepper. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Return the pan to low heat and stir just until the cheese melts, 1-2 minutes.

Pour the cheese sauce evenly over the potatoes and ham. Bake uncovered, until the potatoes can be easily pierced with a fork and the top is golden brown, about 1 hour.

Oh this is SO yummy- we were licking the bowl! Enjoy!

Miss Independent

2010-09-13T14:48:00.000-07:00

We were at the church today setting up for tomorrow's MOPS meeting and when it was time to go, Lorelai got sidetracked by the playground and proceeded to climb onto this spinning thing- Isaac quickly followed her lead. Trying to get her and him to come with me, I said, "okay, mommy's leaving, bye!" and kept walking toward the car. Isaac, of course, was quickly running after to me; Lorelai, however, just started waving from the toy, "Bye mommy! Bye Isaac!" Hmmm...not exactly the reaction I was hoping for. She let me get all the way to the car, put my stuff in, and put Isaac in his seat. I then had to walk all the way back to the toy to get her off. She was seriously quite happy to be left there to play.

Isaac's First Day of Preschool!

2010-09-12T22:34:00.001-07:00

Isaac had his first day of "Little Treasures Preschool" at Kennewick First Lutheran. When he woke up in the morning, he was mildly upset and asked if Baby Girl could go with him, I answered no, that only big boys like him could go. He seemed okay with this answer but I was mildly concerned this might be the beginning of a rough morning. However, before I knew it, he was excitedly eating his oatmeal and telling Lorelai, "You can't mess around this morning, I have school." We got to the school and he went running to the doors, he walked right in, got his name tag (mom forgot the signed papers though! oops!) and then we waited in line for him to go into his class. When he got to the door of his class and the teacher took his hand, he didn't even say goodbye or give me a kiss, he was through the door and happy to be there! I received back at the end of the morning, a very happy little boy who excitedly told me about his day and that they had sang, "If You're Happy and You Know It".

I don't know why I keep giving her yogurt...

2010-09-08T16:13:00.000-07:00

Oh yeah, it's because I get faces like this!

Baby Baumann #3

2010-08-26T21:05:00.000-07:00

So the Baumann's are adding a new member to the family, sometime around the end of January/beginning of February. We're pretty excited about this, although I won't lie, some days I think, "What were we thinking!?!?!" Mostly we were thinking "We make cute kids, let's help populate the world with cute kids!" But that's besides the point. I finally took my first "belly" picture on Wednesday night (17weeks, 4 days, fully clothed since after Isaac no one wants to see my bare skin!), I was relieved to see I'm not as big as I feel when I look down! :) Isaac also felt like he wanted to be in the picture, which I felt made the picture SO much cuter!

She's All That!

2010-08-26T14:12:00.001-07:00

Yummy Dinner!

2010-08-26T13:56:00.001-07:00

Last night I really wasn't sure what I wanted to have for dinner. The calendar said salmon but we ran out of propane, I knew I didn't want broiled salmon, so that was off the table. Friday's dinner was suppose to be a calzone- flavor yet to be determined- so I decided to skip ahead to that. The following is the concoction I worked up:

Broccoli Chicken Calzone

1 pizza crust from Winco (their fresh dough)

1 jar alfredo sauce (1/2 is only necessary, I used leftover from the fridge)

1 chicken breast cut into pieces

About 1 cup of chopped broccoli, perhaps more

Italian blend cheese

Sharp Cheddar- although any cheddar would work

Cook chicken in a little olive oil and seasoning salt (I used Tastefully Simple), once cooked, add chopped broccoli and a little garlic (I used Tastefully Simple Garlic Garlic). Cook until broccoli is tender, take off heat.

Roll out pizza dough- roll it thin, it puffs up in the oven. Spread about 1/2 cups alfredo sauce, or more, depending on your taste, in center of dough. Spread chicken mixture on top of sauce, sprinkle cheese on top (to your taste), fold dough over and roll the edges over. Put in oven preheated to 350, and bake for 20-30 minutes.

It's tasty!! Enjoy!

They love the bath!

2010-01-11T22:31:00.001-08:00

Who Stole The Cookie From The Cookie Jar?

2010-01-03T22:32:00.001-08:00

Mr. Mom

2010-01-03T22:30:00.000-08:00

Isaac is becoming quite the little parent. When Lorelai is doing something he deems wrong, he is not bashful about correcting her and saying, "If you do that again, you're going to sit in time out!" The other night he was also informing her to not do something because she new better. I wonder where he's hearing such things!

Yeehaw!

2010-01-03T21:49:00.000-08:00

Isaac got new underwear (boxer briefs) and new boots at the store today! He was so excited!

Hot Chocolate

2009-12-11T11:08:00.000-08:00

We have created a monster in Isaac by giving him chocolate milk in the morning. He seriously wakes up at 6:30am and says, "I want chocolate milk!" To which he's usually told to go back to sleep, but gee, I wonder what he dreams about! This morning he made this declaration but unfortunately we are out of chocolate syrup. I decided to improvise by making him hot chocolate (very mild chocolate). As he's guzzling down the warm chocolate milk, he takes a break and says, "Oh, I like this milk."

Stubborn Streak...

2009-11-08T22:36:00.000-08:00

Last night Isaac was put in time out for taking a toy away from Lorelai and after time-out was completed he needed to apologize. When I finish telling him this he tells me, "I can't do that..." and repeats this phrase multiple times over the next 20 minutes while we sit on the kitchen floor, me waiting for him to apologize, him saying "I can't do that." Where do you think this stubborn streak comes from!!?!

Daddy and his girl

2009-10-11T22:08:00.001-07:00

Will you marry me?

2009-10-11T21:58:00.000-07:00

Perhaps this is how he'll propose someday (he did this on his own)...

Goodnight Cars...

2009-10-11T21:55:00.000-07:00

The other night before bedtime, Isaac was in our room playing with his cars on our bed. When it was time for him to be done, he didn't want to leave his cars, so I said, "But Isaac, your cars are tired too." and Aaron proceeded to drive a car around and have it putter out, then I took the car, turned it on it's side and made the snoring sound. Isaac like the look of that because he then started making the snoring sound and turning all the cars on their side. After I put him in bed, this is how the side of our bed looked.

Little Parrot

2009-10-04T23:15:00.000-07:00

This morning before church we went up to Fred Meyer to get a couple things, one of them being a coat for Lorelai. As we walked back to the childrens department we had to pass the mens department and Aaron was admiring a fleece jacket; I said to Aaron "you have the same thing at home"...discussion ensued....we walked on. As we were walking back out of the department, Aaron once again stops at the jacket and this time says to Isaac, "Don't you think this would look good on me?" To which Isaac says, "Daddy, you have the same thing at home!"

Movie Quotes!

2009-09-29T15:26:00.000-07:00

A little something he learned from "Madagascar"! I hadn't realized till now how much his speech clarity improved since having his tubes put in- I think it's pretty significant.

My Little Helper

2009-08-28T12:25:00.000-07:00

The other day I was in the kitchen, Lorelai was with me in her exersaucer, and Isaac was in our room playing with his cars on our bed- a favorite spot. Lorelai had a bottle of water in the exersaucer and at one point dropped it over the side; before I had a chance to bend down and pick it up, I hear a little boy yell "I'LL GET IT!" He came running into the kitchen, gave the bottle back to Lorelai and ran back to our room. What a helper!

Jump and Jive

2009-07-16T23:02:00.000-07:00

About 1 year before Aaron and I had Isaac we were taking swing dance lessons and through that became a part of a swing team. Not because we (okay, me) were particularly good but because there was only a small group of young people she had to choose from to be part of the team. We practiced and practiced and that fall we performed our routine at a party of some sort (that information has since left my mind). Tonight while cleaning through some cds I found some that were unmarked and decided to take a look at what was on them. Boy am I glad I did! The pearl below was on one of those cd's! Aaron and I are pretty much in front of the camera the entire time.- Melissa is also in there but I think she's farther away from the camera.

The Things He Does...

2009-07-08T21:12:00.000-07:00

It's amazing the things your children pick up without you even paying attention.

I never payed attention to the fact that Isaac much watch me change Lorelai's diaper and then lay her down for a nap. The other day however, we were all in the living room and he was sitting on the floor playing with his baby- his aunt got him a baby doll when Lorelai was born- while I held Lorelai ; after a short while he got up and went into her room. Being curious, I followed and found that he had put his baby on the changing table, grabbed one of L's diapers and was now requesting that the diaper be put on the baby. I told him okay, but we could go to the living room to do. After the baby was in her clean diaper, he picked her up, carried her again to L's room, placed the baby in the crib walked out of the room closed the door, came up to me and said "Baby's sleeping, shhhh." It was one of the cutest things he's done...that day.

Another thing he somehow picked up, although I'm honestly not sure where this one came from- dad would like to think it came from watching him...but... Isaac was getting into one of the drawers on Aaron's side of the bathroom and came across (for lack of knowing the real name of the tool) a "wrench." I was a bit nervous when he picked it up, envisioning banging on the furniture, but I just watched him for a bit. He took the "wrench" over to his big truck and began fixing it saying, "Whsk whsk whsk" as he did. Needless to say his morning was spent "fixing" ALL of his many cars. I wish I had this one on video as it was pretty priceless.

From Yummy Desserts to PAIN!

2009-07-08T13:37:00.000-07:00

That's pain P90X style. I'm on day three of the P90X plan, not only doing workouts that are totally kicking my butt, but I'm also following a modified version of their nutrition plan.

Here are my nutrition rules:

No soda
I've always had trouble drinking most of my calories in a day. Cut that out and you cut out a significant portion of my caloric intake.

Drink Lots of Water

This is especially helpful for following my first rule. If I'm drinking water then I'm not drinking soda. Also, a glass of water helps to fill you up before meals so you end up eating smaller portions.

5 Meals/Snacks a Day

I'm still not doing great about eating good breakfasts in the morning, but planning my lunches and snacks helps me from hitting the vending machine at 2:00 in the afternoon.

No Corn Syrup

"You know what they say about it?"

"Like what? That it's made from corn, doesn't have artificial ingredients and is fine in moderation?"

...

No, more like:

It's linked to diabetes and obesity
Almost half of commercially tested HFCS contains mercury
HFCS has no nutritional value

High Protein/Low Carb

Now, I'm not trying to avoid carbohydrates all-together, but I'm trying to make sure that the bulk of my caloric intake is in protein.

The results so far:

Well, I'm on day 3 of P90X, so I don't think that I can credit the work outs with anything but the pain that I feel in my arms and legs. However, I started trying to eat healthy and avoid soda about 2 weeks ago. In that time frame my body weight has dropped from a high of 167 to my current weight of 154, and I don't really have a whole lot of weight to lose. I do crave carbs a lot more than I expected, but I find that my energy level has really increased. I don't find myself wearing down at 2:00 in the afternoon anymore, and I'm not tired all of the time like I used to be (something I'm sure Rachel really appreciates.)

As for the workouts, I'm loving them! They absolutely kick my butt, but I feel accomplished afterwards. Tony Horton has an excellent way of motivating you to "Try your best and forget the rest." Throughout the videos he repeats that you probably won't be able to keep up with him just yet, but that's okay. I'm really, the type of person to beat myself up for not being able to work through an entire set of reps on an exercise, but he's done a great job to remove that roadblock and keep me focused on looking forward towards improvement.

I encourage everyone to make the commitment to eat healthier and start a serious exercise program. Like many of you I've never been unhealthy, but I can certainly stand to be healthier.

Oh yummy!

2009-06-28T22:48:00.001-07:00

I made this recipe for dessert the other night and let me tell you, it is GOOD! Aaron says it is "too rich", but I say "pshaw!" Just grab a glass of milk and enjoy!

TEXAS SHEET CAKE

Ingredients

Cooking spray
2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
2 cups all-purpose flour (about 9 ounces)
2 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa, divided
1/2 cup low-fat buttermilk
1 tablespoon vanilla extract, divided
2 large eggs
6 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup fat-free milk
3 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup chopped pecans, toasted

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375°.

Coat a 13 x 9-inch pan with cooking spray, and dust with 2 teaspoons flour. Set aside.

Lightly spoon 2 cups flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine 2 cups flour and next 4 ingredients (through salt) in a large bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Combine 3/4 cup water, 1/2 cup butter, and 1/4 cup cocoa in a small saucepan; bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Add to flour mixture. Beat at medium speed with an electric mixer until well blended. Add buttermilk, 1 teaspoon vanilla, and eggs; beat well. Pour batter into the prepared pan. Bake at 375° for 22 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Place on a wire rack.

Combine 6 tablespoons butter, fat-free milk, and remaining 1/4 cup cocoa in a saucepan; bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Gradually stir in powdered sugar and remaining 2 teaspoons vanilla. Spread over hot cake. Sprinkle cake with pecans. Cool completely on wire rack.

Blue Tongue!

2009-06-20T09:10:00.001-07:00

I gave Isaac a haircut this morning and in hopes of getting him to keep still, I gave him a lollipop, blue raspberry. I sort of forgot that it would turn his tongue blue! He was totally fascinated by it when I showed him his tongue in the mirror.

A Wedding Shower

2009-06-20T08:47:00.000-07:00

These are pictures from my friend Julie's wedding shower that was held last weekend. It was "hosted" by myself, mom and my sister but was actually held at her fiance's house (his yard is so much prettier than mine). It all came together quite beautifully! I can't wait to post pictures of the wedding which will be just beautiful!

The Bride!

The Belly

2009-06-19T17:09:00.000-07:00

I just scanned all my maternity photos from Lorelai into the computer for my mom, so I thought it would be fun to post them on here. Ahhh...the pregnant belly! Hard to believe she's almost 6 months.

Wheel Deals

2009-06-19T14:58:00.000-07:00

While at the grocery store last week, on the way out Isaac spotted the Wheel Deals magazine and excitedly shouted "CARS!" so what's a mom to do? I handed him a copy of the magazine. The whole way home he sat in his seat and looked through the magazine, we got home and he wanted to look through the magazine with mom, dad got home and he wanted to look through the magazine with him. Isaac thought he had died and gone to heaven with a magazine FULL of cars...

Yumm...Cookies!

2009-06-19T14:29:00.000-07:00

I rarely bake- cookies at least- but I had the desire to whip up some cookies this afternoon while the kiddos were napping. I have this great Mary Engelbreit's cookbook called "Mary Engelbreit's Sweet Treats Dessert Cookbook", pretty much every dessert I make comes from this book. Nothing has failed me yet! The following is the cookie recipe I used today and believe me, they are delicious!

Triple Chocolate Chip Chippers

2 1/3 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup packed light brown sugar
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 (3oz.) bars bittersweet chocolate, cut in 1/4 to 1/2-inch pieces (I didn't not add this)
2/3 cup white chocolate chips
2/3 cup milk chocolate chip
3/4 cup pecans, coursely chopped (I used ground almonds instead)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease two baking sheets.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside
3. In a large bowl, beat the butter and brown and granulated sugars with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla.
4. On low speed, gradually add the flour mixture in two additions. Using a large wooden spoon, stir in the chocolates and pecans.
5. Drop the dough by slightly rounded tablespoonfuls about 2 inches apart onto the prepared baking sheets.
6. Bake the cookies for 9 to 11 minutes, until the edges are golden brown. Let cool for 2 to 3 minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer the cookies to wire racks to cool completely

Yield: about 5 dozen (I only got about 3 dozen)

Blankie Break

2009-04-09T15:56:00.000-07:00

This morning after Isaac had woken up and gotten his morning cuddle, he was following me around the house dragging his blankie behind him. This is not his normal behavior, he's normally just a blankie for bed kind of boy. I thought it was so cute so I went to get the camera and when I turned the corner in the kitchen this is what I found.

This is why I'm not a professional chef

2009-03-21T21:46:00.000-07:00

So tonight Rachel and I had Fritzy and his family over for dinner. Pretty good menu, too.

Dijon Chicken
Ultimate Twice Baked Potatoes
Asparagus
Double Chocolate Pudding Parfait

Now, for someone with any cullinary knowledge, this will be a pretty simple question. Which one of thes ingredients does not belong in a Double Chocolate Pudding Parfait?

Okay, in my defense the bottle of sesame oil that we had was the exact same size and shape as our old bottle of vanilla extract. It was also located in the same cupboard on the same shelf. However, this in no way gives me an excuse to ignore the terrible sesame oil smell as I was preparing the parfait, or, you know, the writing on the side of the bottle!

Fortunately, I've learned to always taste what you're cooking. My wife relayed a story about a guy who was on the tv show Chopped and accidently put salt in a cake instead of sugar. He didn't taste the batter and the judges were very disappointed. When I tasted the cream, I asked my wife to come help me figure out what I did wrong.

Rachel: "What went in this?"
Me: "Cream, sugar, cocoa and vanilla extract."
Rachel notices the bottle of sesame oil on the counter
Rachel: "Is this the vanilla extract that you used?"
Me: "Oh geez!"

Rachel was a bit disappointed that we caught the mistake. She wanted to see how polite the Fritzs could have been. "This is really good a really good chocolate sesame oil parfait!"

In The Background...

2009-03-19T23:35:00.000-07:00

We took these videos the other night in hopes of catching Lorelai roll over- she had previously done it 3 times. I, however, think the true jewel of the video (since she never rolls over) is what is happening in the background. Take a look! Remember, don't pay attention to Lorelai- she just lays there- watch the background. Oh, and ignore what I'm saying, I'll pretty much say anything to get that boy to giggle!

The Smallest Things...

2009-03-19T22:14:00.000-07:00

It's amazing how the smallest things can capture the attention of a 19 month old. Aaron and I finally found a ceiling fan we both liked and Aaron installed it this morning. Well as soon as Isaac saw it he thought it was the neatest thing he'd ever seen. Why? I couldn't tell you-- we have a ceiling fan in our living room. For some reason though, he was enamored with the ceiling fan and insisted on sitting and watching it. If I knew this would captivate him as much as it has I would have been less picky and installed one sooner!

Sitting and watching...

The fan...

In The Fort

2009-03-05T17:29:00.000-08:00

Last week Aaron figured out he could pull Isaac around on this body pillow we have; so last night Aaron was doing that with him and then realized they could get "under it" for a fort. After doing that for a little while Isaac decided he wanted to read a book. He runs over and picks out his book "One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish" by Dr. Seuss and takes it to Aaron, but Aaron wasn't allowed to just read the book- he had to get under the body pillow in the "fort." This little priceless moment was thankfully captured by mom. I also added the video of Aaron pulling him around on the body pillow for your enjoyment.

Future Chef

2009-03-03T13:32:00.000-08:00

Sick Little Boy

2009-03-02T21:04:00.000-08:00

I've been blessed with an EXTREMELY healthy little boy but my little guy came down with a fever (peaking at 103.8 on Sunday) this weekend. Poor buddy! He laid on the couch in just a diaper for the entire afternoon on Sunday, barely ate a bite and really wasn't interested in drinking anything. Thankfully he seems to be improving, the fever peaked at 101 today but mostly hovered around 99. He's also had a continually running nose which has been accompanied with several snot bubbles and I just couldn't pass up the opportunity of catching one on "film". Can we say "POP!"

Here we go!

2009-03-02T20:59:00.000-08:00

I finally decided I'm ready to make some use of this blog I created a while ago. I'm not really sure who will be interested in what I have to say, so I guess this is more for me than anything else. Just a place to jot thoughts, stories, photo's, etc. etc. since I don't keep a journal and eventually I won't be able to remember everything. So here we go...