Life Just Zoomed By in the HOV Lane

Life has gotten away from me (you probably guessed that from the title)!

Here's Beau all ready for church! 

The day I took those pictures is the day he pooped during the Sacrament...and it wasn't quiet. :)   Something every mother taking her baby to church has experienced I'm sure...but still embarassing funny.

Things that have happened since my last post:

BEAU:

Beau was SUPER grouchy for about a week.  I started to worry that he might have an ear infection, so I took him to see Dr. J.  The doctor checked him over, but couldn't find anything.  The doctor then told me that Beau might be teething or may need more calories than my breast milk can offer. We have started giving him rice cereal in the evenings, and he is SO MUCH better! 

Funny story:

Right after telling Dr. J how crabby Beau has been, he started explaining what he wanted me to try.  While he was telling me about feeding Beau more calories, Beau started laughing at him (random!) . I think he wanted to make a liar out of me.  At least I know he likes his pediatrician!

JERELD:

Jereld finished putting in a fence in our back yard.  It divides the yard so that our dogs get part of the yard, and we'll put a lawn, a garden, and citrus trees on the other side.  I must say that I have enjoyed going in the backyard without having 3 rowdy dogs jumping all over me (correction: 1 rowdy dog--but I'll pretend it's all 3 that are annoying).  Now he'll continue to develop our yard. As he would say, "Add it to my list!"

The picture below illustrates (with the white line I Photoshopped in) where the fence is. Thank you Google for providing the aerial shot of my house.  My helicopter is currently in the repair shop--the imaginary repair shop that is.

(Note: Those are not our cars...also not our toys in the sand---yes, I do have a GIANT "sandbox" in my backyard which I will be getting rid of.  I'm not fond of cat poop or scorpions...or sand in my house for that matter.)

ALLISON (me):

I am still on my way to getting in better shape. I am now about 14 lbs. less than I was when I got pregnant with Beau.  (YAY!)  I have decided to try to start the next pregnancy in shape so that it will be easier next time.  (Note: This is definitely NOT an announcement.) I have 10 lbs. to go to my goal weight! I can't believe it! And, I've lost just under 30 lbs. so far! (giving myself a GIANT high five, pat on the back, and a wink in the mirror..figuratively that is) 

I made my grandma's DELICIOUS bread recipe...twice.  I made strawberry freezer jam...twice.  I made homemade English muffins...twice.  I made homemade bagels...once.  And, I just finished making Strawberry Banana Struesel Muffins (recipe invented by none-other-than....me!).  I will be posting the recipe on my family's cooking blog! 

3 months

Baby Splash!!!

I took Beau to a Baby Splash class at a local swim school! He had a blast! He got to float on his back and try to hold onto the side of the pool {which he never actually did}.  He also got to be in a pool for his VERY FIRST TIME! He likes kicking his little legs! That is for sure! I wanted to get some pictures of his very first time swimming, but Jereld couldn't go and I wasn't about to hand my nice camera to a total stranger {especially around water}.   So, these pictures from my cheap-o digital camera will have to suffice! 

Here's Beau in his little "speedo" he he! It's really a reusable swim diaper. 

 

 Here we are together at the very beginning of class!

Back in the Saddle---a Giveaway story!

I'm back!

That's right folks! I feel like I've finally gotten a handle on life with a baby!

So, what does that mean? I'M DOING A GIVEAWAY (on my photography blog)!!!! HERE

ENTER ENTER ENTER!


Other than that, I've signed up for (free) swimming "lessons" for the kid! It's called Baby Splash and should be tons of fun! This week is our first week! It will also be his first time in a swimming pool!

I cleaned and cleaned and cleaned yesterday, so my house looks decent.  Did I mention I'm pooped?

I'm still on my weight loss journey and haven't fallen off the wagon yet! High five to me.  I think, however, that I've hit some sort of plateau.  I've been doing everything right, but haven't seen real results in awhile.  Time to play with my calories again???? Maybe.

Fat Jeans Never Felt So Good!

So, many of you may not know, but I have begun the LONG, TOUGH road of losing the baby weight.

I'm currently doing my own version of Weight Watchers (i.e. I don't go to meetings or pay for the program.  I bought the materials from someone on Ebay and just stay accountable to myself and Jereld). 

Weight Watchers when you're breastfeeding is actually a lot easier.  You get a TON more points.  I don't feel hungry really.  But, I do have to eat healthy {insert soundtrack of me weeping right here}. You see, I made some delicious chocolate chip cookies for my Sunday School class {okay, I admit it! I ate a couple myself}, and I made Jereld hide the rest.  I was sick yesterday {something akin to the flu I suppose} and nothing sounded as good as a soft, chewy, chocolate chip cookie.  Victory! I couldn't find them! Jereld did an EXCELLENT job of hiding them.  I still don't know where they are.  

But, I started my weight loss journey on March 14, and I have lost about 13 lbs so far.  I took pictures of myself {which will never be posted on this blog because they are AWFUL and I got brave and only wore a sports bra and shorts} to track my progress, and I'll be taking new pictures once a month to see how far I've come.   I can already tell you a couple victories I've made: 

1) I am no longer wearing maternity pants.

2) I am starting to fit into some of my pre-pregnancy clothes {Although I'm currently in what I consider my "fat pants," somehow it's a victory I am very pleased about.  Nothing's worse than wearing maternity jeans when you're not pregnant anymore}.

In other news: 

Beau is doing great! He has started smacking his lips in an attempt to copy Jereld.  He woke up and started smacking his lips the other morning. He also does a lot of what we refer to as laughing or giggling.  It's a fun stage! 

I made a little video {per my mom's request}, but WARNING: it's probably only cute to grandmas and moms. Don't say I didn't warn you! 

Thumb Sucker!

Yep! We have a thumb sucker on our hands!

He's also a little bit naughty! A couple nights ago, I was breastfeeding him (in the middle of the night) and he stopped and looked up at me.  I said, "Hello!"  He got the biggest smile! He wanted to play...but I said that he had better go back to sleep before he got into big trouble!

So everywhere we go with him, everyone puts in their 2 cents about who they think he looks like, but we just think he looks like a human.  What do you think?  None of the pictures below are of us at the same age as he is right now (I don't have any that I can find...sorry)! Use your imagination! 



PS--Remember how I promised to post the Thin Mints Recipe? Well, I did it! HERE

2 Months!

Yep! Beau is 2 months old!  Does it look like we're getting any more sleep?

This picture reminds me of a picture from a previous post...except it was a picture of Jereld.

In all fairness, the last couple of nights have been BLISS compared to previous nights.  Last night, Beau went to sleep all by himself in his bassinet.  We usually have to strap him in his carseat and rock him for 30 minutes for those little peepers to close.  He is also doing great at sleeping in the bassinet all night! He hasn't slept by me in TWO nights...count them...one...two! Which means I actually have a good night's rest. 

In other news:

I got all that for $48.07.  I know...that's a MINOR couponing feat for some of you ladies, but to me it's nothing short of a miracle.

Let me break it down for you!

-26 boxes of name brand cereal

-25 boxes of name brand pasta

-16 powerades (these didn't really have a coupon, but they were on sale!)

-1 ketchup (no coupon...I just needed ketchup...but it's included in the total so I had to include it in the pic)

-1 bottle of dish soap

-9 boxes of name brand granola bars

I saved: $173.61 

Meaning, if nothing was on sale and no coupons had been used, I would have paid $221.68.

Now I know that there are ladies that can go to the store and buy 200+ items and spend $1.78 or something ridiculous like that (and I applaud you), but I felt pretty good about this.  I don't think I'll ever get TOO involved in couponing, but at least I can bulk up our 3 month supply right!

One last thing about couponing: if you're interested, check out http://www.grocerysmarts.com/.  It's sweet! (AND FREE!)

Oh...and let me post something else about my cute kid. (My grandmother used to say, "Every crow thinks her chicks are the blackest!")  We finally got his smile on camera.  Eat your heart out America!