Birthstone and Initials

Lately I fell in love with a Christmas gift all over. My sweet hubby (with a little help from my sweet sister) gave me this darling necklace. It has my son's initials and his birthstone. It is cute and subtle and something I can wear everyday!

The necklace was purchased from this etsy shop tiposcreations. 

Mommy & Me Monday

Found this picture of me and my little 8 week old...We flew across country from CA all the way to MA to meet his East Coast Family! He was so tiny...

Each week I documented on our chalk board to keep track of his development! Two days before he turned 8 weeks is when the neurosurgeon gave us a thumbs up to fly with the babe. Truly a day that my prayers were answered!

Linking Up W/ other Baby Mamas

Weekend Revisited

So quickly it goes by...I got home late Friday night after a pretty intense work day. Had a sleep over at my parents of course with my sis and babe...because we did the community garage sale bright and early on Saturday! It was partly a success...I sold clothes, our kitchen table, a bike, etc.  but basically feel like I gave it all away! Then we had a quick pool sesh followed by a dinner party Southern style at my brothers! I had to prepare Saturday night for work in the wee hours on Sunday mornin'...but after over sleeping (my alarm set for 4:45 and didn't get out of bed until 5:15) and stressfully attempting to get ready in 15 minutes I heard the phone ring and I was on call for the day...best news!! I was able to partly enjoy Sunday with the family (when on call I always have a pit in my stomach that my phone will ring and I will have the hurry to work, but it didn't happen today).

 Photos: greyhound, nursery, hugs at the pool, family photo

 Photos: crazy nap position, shirt head, sun bather, pool napper

Photos: upside down baby, baby in truck bed, ladies

The day my baby stopped eating baby food...

It is official this boy loves to eat and he loves to feed himself! Or maybe just hates the act of being fed. I can no longer just "grab" a snack, he also has to grab a snack. I can no longer have  a quick lunch, he also wants a quick lunch. But now... he will eat my food. It is amazing!! FREEDOM! It used to be that we would take turns feeding him during dinner and he would want to eat and eat fast! Now I can just arrange his meal on his tray and he goes for it. Last night we had tostada salads for dinner and I made him a mini tostada salad (cut up turkey, tortilla, avocado, cheese etc. ) he loved it! But you know who is   really loving this...our chocolate lab/food lover, Harley. 

* Note: The less clothes the better = less mess.

Afternoon Pool Sesh

After going to the beach this past week and realizing I have not purchased a bathing suit in years (minus what I bought last year when I was pregnant) I set out to buy some suits for this season. Of course I didn't come home empty handed...Easton got two super cute suits from baby Gap! I...did not find ANYTHING! I will continue my search this week. Do you see this super cute baby in that super cute bathing suit?

He absolutely loved the pool! I didn't put him under because I was nervous he would swallow/inhale water. His mouth was open the entire time. He was splashing and kicking and having the time of his life!

 Mister Babe was about ready for a nap, but his Papa arrived so he got his second wind and went for another swim. 

So we have this space....

We have this area at the bottom of our stairs that I really am unsure about. Do I leave it with nothing? Do I add a little table?  A chair or stool? A lamp? Do I arrange a gallery wall?  Since our downstairs area is on the little side I'm not sure if it would look too cluttered. But I do know that it looks very blank and boring. 

I always see these amazing hallways/foyers/gallery walls etc. And I guess you could say I am a little jealous.

source

 I mean how cool is this. They made a DIY magnetic board which goes along side their chalk board door as your looking into their amazing wood paneled front foyer. I just need some guidance...like an interior decorators guidance! Or maybe the author of this blog could just come and work her magic on my house!

source

Or this...they took a blank corner and are in the process of adding some life! I love it! All it takes is a table, a mirror, and some perfectly hung frames!

So I came up with some ideas...all from Target. I could add a little hutch, a tall lamp, a stool? Since Threshold and Nake Berkus have started their Target lines...home decor from Target is looking pretty classy!

Beautifying my Cork Board

Before

Since our wedding I have had two cork boards laying around that just kind seem blah. See here for my original use  of them as our place cards for the wedding dinner. This past weekend on our craft day I chose to beautify my cork board to hopefully add some decor to my extra room/office area! Of course when I sat down to do said project, I realized the fabric was wrinkled and I didn't have a staple gun...fail! (How come when I go to do DIY projects it turns out I don't have the appropriate gear and then I give up?) Well the next day I got more motivation when I saw the iron that according to some house guests and the husband had been missing for weeks (yes it was exactly where it is supposed to be, in the basket above the ironing board). Then the husband and I went to the Depot (Home Depot) to browse the fan section since we are getting ceiling fans installed this weekend and decided we could finally purchase our very own staple gun instead of borrowing my brothers like we normally do. When we got back my sista and I were able to start the process! 

As I was so frustrated with major events like wrinkled fabric and lack of staple gun my parents called me from New England letting me know there was some "explosion" in Boston. My parents were on their way to Boston for their future flight home. I immediately turned the news on and there it was "explosions near the finish line at the marathon". There was blood, chaos and people frantically helping others. The news kept replaying (and still are) the explosion...as if we forgot what it looked like the first time. And the broadcasters keep getting excited when they think they have "new footage" of the explosions. It is kind of sickening, but thats how the new always is. They have breaking news that citizens are being attacked and the next breaking news that a tree fell on a road because of the wind...Really? 

I knew my parents were okay, but realized others were not. It makes me sick to see that these people are hurting but makes my heart happy when I see others helping strangers because that is our American way. As I see random chaos at work during emergencies in the hospital I see how others really do try their hardest to make other people feel better in times of need. This was on a much broader spectrum...everyone was helping. People running towards the site to carry others away or apply tourniquets when another explosion can happen. Heroes. These tragic events always make me want to smack myself in the face. Wrinkled fabric? Lack of staple gun? What was I thinking. 

I can't fathom the loss of a little boy. I wont think about it. Those lost, those grieving, those attempting to heal, those struggling to hold on, I pray for all of them. 

After

Now I must find some goodies to pin to my board! Its interesting that when you hear of these tragedies you know you'll remember what you were doing. I guess this little silly cork board will be that item for me. Or the vision I have of my sweet boy pulling himself up for the first time yesterday. Memories are a silly thing. 

Staycation Weekend

We had a mini sister girls weekend...basically my sister slept over FOR THREE NIGHTS! It was amazing having her here. Another person to craft with, shop with, love on Mr. Baby with, cook with, have coffee with etc. Above pictures are from Saturday night. We had some people over for dinner and I made an amazing crock pot carnitas recipe with homemade tomatillo sauce...and then the next morning I realized I forgot to put out the tomatillo sauce (majorly bummed). We had greyhounds with lime garnish (grey goose and grapefruit...sounds gross but ever so good).

The rest of our weekend consisted of crafting and taking care of my boo. I finally "enhanced" my cork board. She started her really cute jewelry holder (I can't wait to see how it turns out). And we snapped some shots of Mr. Babe for a couple of upcoming projects I hope to conquer!

A teething Tot

1. Sophie: This little giraffe works wonders! This little miracle worker is great because little babies can hold onto it, you can fasten it to a pacifier clip, and it doesn't make a mess! Works great for outings and the car!

2. Munchkin Fresh Food Feeder: These mesh containers have provided my little guy with relief when nothing else does! I have cut up fruit in small pieces, froze it and then packed the containers with it. He can hold onto it and it not only feels good on his sore gums, but also keeps him occupied. This can get messy so I only use it when I'm at home. At first I used ice cubes...but this makes for a wet and cold teething baby.

3.Teething ring: everyone should have one with a teething child...even when its not cold it works because it is rubbery.

4. Teething gel: I try my hardest to stay away from the gels since the Dr.'s have said it can cause the throat to become numb, I just make sure to only use a little! It works for instant relief...

5. Hylands teething tablets: My friends swear by these...so far I haven't noticed a difference with the tablets. I normally resort to Tylenol at bedtime.

See those three little suckers on the bottom...and no he doesn't have any top teeth. I can't imagine when he does because I have heard and I fear for when he bites while nursing!

Our Little Munchkin is 8 months old

My Easton,

You are now 8 months old. These past 8 months have been a blessing to to your Mama and Dada. Your happiness is our life and you make each of our days worth living to the fullest. You could basically say we are obsessed with you, before bed each night we come check on you to see what cute sleep position you have moved into, lately you always seem to be on your stomach with your cute tush in the air. You are always happy when eating, especially when feeding yourself cheerios, puffs or peas. Sippy cups keep you busy for at least 15 minutes. Each day you spend time in your walker outside while watching the plants and grass be watered, you think it is absolutely hysterical when Bruce or Harley walk by you and run around the yard. Bath time or shall I say splash time is your favorite part of your nightly routine. Apparently you miss us during the night because your still waking at all hours, we have been told and told again that we need to let you cry...but don't quite have the heart to do so. The love that we have built over these last 8 months is unimaginable and I keep thinking I want time to slow down or for you to stay little, but then at the end of each month I love you even more!

Love Mama

You now eat 3 meals a day and love feeding yourself. You eat oatmeal, pancakes, fruits, veggies. We finally started taking you out to eat again. You love to sit in a restaurant and people watch...even though you are not very discrete when doing so. You are still nursing at least 5-6 times a day and have bottles while mama is at work.

Sleep is our most challenging part with you. You normally go to sleep at about 730 and will sleep almost 12 hours...with waking sporadically throughout the night! I hope we are making progress in this arena, but don't want to get too excited. You take about 2 naps a day!

You are on the move. You can stand when holding onto something. You can go from sitting to stomach and back and forth. You can crawl and but you think army crawling is faster. You hang out in your walker when your at home but if your at Grammas and Grampas you walk all over the place (apparently the baby Einstein walker is better than the one we have).

Cilantro Lime Aioli

Cilantro Lime Aioli with Homegrown Artichokes

This week the Hubster and I shared our first homegrown artichoke and it was AMAZING! There is nothing like the satisfaction of walking to the Stroud Farms (aka our backyard) and picking one of these babies to share for dinner. Since we are always looking for healthy ways to eat I decided to make an aioli (which by the way is not that healthy) rather than dipping this bad boy into melted butta. Since we are also growing cilantro I whipped up some aioli.

Recipe goes something like this:
combine
1 cup of mayo
squirt of lime juice
a bit of chopped cilantro
a scoop of chopped garlic
some cracked pepper
and set in the fridge for about a half hour

I wonder how it would be with half mayo half greek yogurt (probably much healthier)

Baby Proofing 101

    Before becoming a parent It was easy to pose judgment on others based on whether they placed their kid in a bubble or let their child roam free. I always thought I would be the happy medium...don't we all just think we do it right? I now realize that each child is different and there really is not a set in stone way to care for them. Just because you have a bullet proof house and your child wearing a bumper body suit doesn't doesn't make you any better than the parent that does the opposite. 

    The other night before we put Easton to bed we discussed how we should really lower his crib soon because before we know it he will realize he can sit up, then stand up and then climbing out! We debated on the right time, and new it was now, but were both SO tired from our days we tried to convince ourselves otherwise. But we put our parent shoes on and lowered it. That night when he woke up in the middle of the night of course I went in to rescue him and he was sitting up, crying and of course waiting for his mama (who needs to grow thicker skin and let this baby cry). 

   We have a gate on the stairs, it was for the dogs, but now its for the babe too! We put outlet covers on...which made him curious. We put a bumper on the stone fireplace. But this kid loves his cords...Basically how far is too far and what is not enough. When browsing the baby proofing section at buybuybaby or babies r us I see that there is a baby proofing item for each and every nook and cranny of this world. What do you all think is necessary and unnecessary?

Based on these pictures, I think I am going to be in trouble with this little one!

Beach Babe

I have been so excited to bring Easton to the beach and today was finally the day! My SIL and I took the little one to Laguna Beach and it was definitely a success (baby asleep before 7 pm type of success). We had planned to be going to the beach so of course I thought it out very carefully so that I was prepared! I always see pictures of me and my brother and sister at the beach with my mom when we were littler and I now wonder...how in the hell did she manage 3 kids and the stuff that comes along with them! I mean seriously I had about 4 bags...one of food/drinks, one with diapers/wipes etc, one with toys and then threw on the beach umbrella and blanket (which thank goodness they had shoulder straps attached) and I looked like I was going on vacation! Good thing my SIL was there to actually carry the baby! 

1. There a so many different sunscreens to choose from. I figured I used Coppertone as a kid, its 50 SPF, smells amazing so why not! I guess until someone breaks the news to me that I should be using something else, I will be happy with it! 

2. I purchased a 6' really cute teal umbrella from Target (which is currently on sale) because you can't bring a baby to the beach without some shade! Thankful it had a shoulder strap...because I had no free hands!

3. Again Target to the rescue...I got a zip up picnic blanket which is for 4 people, but when you have a crawling baby I guess nothing will be big enough! 

4. Sand Toys are on my list. I basically just brought some toys from home that I could rinse off! He doesn't really know the difference right now. 

5. I was so excited to use my thermal tote which I purchased at a thirty one party! I got the above print and a monogrammed "S". So cute! 

I still need some pointers on how families spend the day at the beach. I mean really? How do you get a baby to nap at the beach! I tried and tried, but eventually gave up! Its pretty interesting to be in a bakini and having your baby thrashing around...

As you can see he was in heaven! I was quite worried that he would want to eat the sand, since he eats everything that he can find on the ground, but he only went for it a couple of times. We had a blast and I can't wait for more beach days to come!