Happy Birthday Mom!

 

Happy Birthday

Mom!

Hope you have a great day!

xoxo,

Sarah (& family)

Crocker Park Holiday Lighting

On Saturday evening, the 3 of us ventured out to Crocker Park to watch the holiday lighting ceremony. All you Kansas Citians can just imagine the Plaza lighting ceremony and then think of about 1/6th of that size. It's not even near the splendor and visual amazement of the Plaza, but it's still fun and full of Christmas spirit.

When we first set up shop in our 'spot', Drew gave us the pouty lip for about 10 minutes. Once he realized mom and dad were having fun dancing and singing Christmas songs along with the band, the fear subsided and he was just peachy. We were also experienced with fireworks world after a successful 4th of July  so I knew this display wouldn't phase him either. Although it was past his bedtime and the stimulation around him was overwhelming, our little guy did great and even smiled a tad bit.

Sleeping Angel

Sharp Shooter

Ever since Derek learned his gun skills, he has wanted me to learn how to shoot. We decided that it was time seeing as how I've slowly become less freaked out by guns over the past 2 years. Although I'll hopefully never have to touch one again, I was very unsettled about going to the range last week. The entire 30 minute drive, Derek proudly taught me as much as he could on what he had been trained about guns to ease my mind. The proper hold, safety tips, strong grips, wide stance, etc, etc, etc. Upon arrival we were ushered to the 'private' side which wasn't being used at all and we had 4 stalls to ourself. This helped my comfort level as all 10 public stalls were occupied by shooters, including a few that were on the creepy-looking side. After more lessons from Derek, I declined to take the first shot. Looking like a pro, he stepped up first, aimed and fired.

And that's when I lost it.

I don't know if it was the fact that I'd never been near a loaded gun, let alone one firing. Or that there were about 20-25 people walking around the facility with loaded guns. Or maybe it was the gut wrenching thoughts swirling my head about the only reasons I'd ever have to even fire a gun. Whatever it was, all of my emotions balled up and I just had a deep cry for about 30 seconds. Derek stopped, turned around to console me, we chatted for a few minutes and then everything was ok. It was weird. I didn't even 'feel' emotional, it just came out once I felt the shot deep inside the core of my body. After Derek shot a few more rounds followed by a couple more words of wisdom, it was my turn. With my hands and body shaking, I tentatively took hold of the gun, planted my feet and raised my arms to fire. It seemed like I was pulling back on that trigger forever and then out of the blue it happened. I had been holding my breath so I gasped for air and carefully laid the gun down only to look up and see where I hit.

Bullseye.

The bullet hit the target with a bang exactly where I was aiming it. It was the most powerful feeling in the world that I was not prepared for. My grip must not have been tight enough, though, as the gun almost flew out of my hands after firing. I also did not have that 'excited' feeling that people get when shooting and I'm pretty sure every single muscle in my body was tensed. I had done it though... and did it good! Something I honestly had never thought I would ever do in my entire life and, quite frankly, had NO desire to ever do. But the fact that I hit the target perfectly encouraged just a small tinge of excitement to roll down my spine. I ended up shooting better than Derek and getting a 96/100** and boy did that make me feel good.

As I told Derek, it really brought me from a "5" to a "75" as far as comfort level with guns. Although I'm sure I'll never be "100" comfortable, it was an experience that was needed and I'm glad we did it.

(**Sidenote, it did take me about 15 minutes to get off those first 10 bullets when Derek shot all 10 in under 3 minutes).

10 Months old

Happy 10 Months Sweet Boy!

Stats:
- Weight: 23 lbs
- Height: 30 inches

Changes:
- Drew still wins the award for the best sleeper on a consistent 11-12 hour schedule. Daylight savings threw him off a bit for a while, but we're so thankful for how he sleeps. He also naps 1 to 2 times a day for anywhere from an hour to three hours still.
- Drew still sleeps on his back although sometimes we notice him falling asleep on his side.
- He is now saying Momma all the time and have said Dadda also along with a few other multiple syllable sounds/words. Drew has clapped a few times and pulls up on anything he can get his hands on.
- He is pretty much eating anything we eat now three times a day and still takes five 4-6 oz bottles a day which we are slowing tapering down. He has been a wonderful eater with a healthy appetite!
- Drew has been doing great with the sippy cup and enjoys drinking from it, but still finds it hard to tip it up enough to get the last sip.
- He is a full out crawler now and gets anywhere he wants to get. We can't take our eyes off of him for a minute!
- Drew goes straight for books these days and really loves to turn the pages. I'm scared he'll get a paper cut as he just goes crazy with the pages!
- He also has definitely shown his 'boy' side this month enjoying banging on anything he can. He loves to play the drums on his highchair, tables, toys, and anything else that makes noise!
- Drew is still loving swimming and really kicks like crazy in the water. kicking all the time. He doesn't cry at all when he gets dunked and isn't a baby about being splashed in the face.
- As far as clothes, he still can fit into some 12 month shirts, but generally we're in the 18m-24m range.
- Lastly, he still has 8 teeth with no signs of anymore coming through.

And of course some of the other poses:

Swimming

It's been a couple months since our swim lessons ended and we decided to take a family dunk this past Sunday! I wish I would have gotten some pictures about 5 minutes in as Drew was completely splashing and kicking all over with a huge grin on his face. The pictures below show his tentativeness right before entering the water including his nervous trait of clasping his hands. He gets so quiet and nervous and his sweet face is so aprehensive.

Within a few minutes of encouragement and being thrown into the air, he's having a blast. He was a little froggy kicking non stop towards his ducky and he has no problem being dunked two times. At the end he even sat with me in the shallow waters watching the older kids play for a bit before heading home. This little guy is going to be one serious fish, just like his mommy!

Cake in a Mug FAIL

A friend sent me this recipe for a tiny Cake in a Mug that you bake in your oven and I have been dying to try it! I was so excited for the perfect little one-serving portion of a chocolate cake that I could whip up in 5 minutes some drizzly, cold evening.

So earlier this week I decided to test it out. With thoughts of indulging in this throughout the winter from time to time, I measured out all ingredients and started the 3 minutes in the microwave. After letting it cool for a few minutes and salivating from how good it looked, I settled down on the couch and dug in.

YUCK.

It was simply disgusting. I'm not sure if it was the fact that I used diet hot chocolate mix that's extremely low in calories or some other reason but it just wasn't that good. It was very chewy and wasn't even that "chocolaty". Needless to say, I moped around after the results and ended up just drizzling some chocolate over banana pieces in order to get the fix that I had been craving.

Does anyone have any success with another single-serving cake in a mug type recipe? If so, I'd LOVE to have it!

One Fall Day

Surprisingly, it's been pretty warm temperatures up here hitting the low 60's the weekend and this upcoming week not looking too bad. We are trying to soak up being outdoors as much as we can and spent some time at a park soaking up sunshine and fall colors yesterday. There wasn't many other people there making it feel like we had the play set to ourselves. We made sure to wear out the slide, swings and jungle gym before heading home.

And this picture made my mother-bear protective feelings pour out from future thoughts of Drew climbing around by himself. I know children must fall so they can learn to get up but I am already trying to find companies that I can invest in who are creating protective bubbles for children to wear keeping them safe from any harm.

Can't you just see the "look what I can do" face here?

Menchie's Frozen Yogurt

Derek's parents sent Drew some 'treat' money for Halloween and told him to 'treat' us to Menchie's Frozen Yogurt. We LOVE Menchie's so this was perfect! Last night we decided to grab some fro-yo and below is the reaction we always get from Drew when he's offered a tiny taste. He has never had a fondness for frozen things in his mouth and makes the cutest faces when it first goes in. Once he realize how good it tastes though, his world turns better. This video is so cute because you can tell how much he wants to eat it, yet at the same time is so hesitant as he knows it's so cold!

Thanks Mimi and Grandpa for the yummy treat! Drew loved taste-testing, but loved his spoon even more!

Halloween at Crocker Park

I think Drew was in his Pooh costume at least 5 different days this October. Thank goodness it kept him warm and cozy and was comfortable or I'm sure we would have seen a few tantrums. This past weekend we ventured to Crocker Park for their Halloween festivities. It included a pet costume competition and trick or treating for the kids. Drew LOVED watching the pups all dressed up and we had a great time eating lunch at B Spot with some friends.

Ok, I think it's safe to say that I'm done with the Pooh pics. Sorry, but it was my baby's first Halloween and I get to take a lot of pictures!

More Halloween Pictures

Only because I like to think no one is tired of seeing Drew in a Pooh costume! I mean, how could you be?

Happy Halloween!

Also check out these spooky ghost cupcakes I made last night for Derek's work! They are DELICIOUS and the cream cheese frosting is quite yummy. I added a large chocolate chip for the ghost's mouth and two small ones for the eyes and followed a pumpkin spice cake recipe!

Hope you have a Happy Halloween!

Facetime

 

Technology in general has really helped us keep close with family while we spend a few years up here in Cleveland. Although texting pictures and videos of our baby to family is great, using Facetime on our iphones is the best!

Similar to Skype, we can see and chat with anyone else who has an iPhone at any time as long as we both have wireless. Which, let's admit, is pretty much 90% of the world now that it's 2011. Drew's Mimi and Grandpa call all the time on Facetime, even it's just for a 5 minute 'hello' and see his face. Drew can hear and see them and even smiles at the phone knowing they are talking to him.

I can't imagine what will be next for technology but I'm sure I'll love it! If they could only invent a way for grandparents to hug their grandchild virtually, how much happier of a world would it be?

Mapleside Farms Take 2

This past Sunday, we ventured back to Mapleside Farms again for the 2nd time this fall. The weather was perfect, the leaves were colorful and the sun felt good. Last time we went, it was too much of a hassle to enjoy the hayride with a stroller and our bags of pumpkins and apples. Drew enjoyed hitching a ride on daddy's back this time in the Beco and got to experience his first hayride!

Creamy Italian Crockpot Chicken

Again with the crockpot. I think I'm leaning towards an addiction here. It's just SO EASY!

This recipe was found on my friend Desiree's blog and I was excited to test it out seeing as how I love the tenderness that comes with crockpot chicken. This recipe was super easy and we decided to serve it over a bed of brown rice with a side of broccoli covered by Hollandaise sauce.

Ingredients

3-4 chicken breasts (we used about 1.5 lbs)

1 package cream cheese (reduced fat tastes just fine!)

1 can cream of chicken

1 package dry Italian dressing mix

Directions

1. In a mixing bowl soften cream cheese.

2. After cream cheese is softened add cream of chicken then fill the empty cream of chicken can 1/2 full with water and add to cream cheese mix.

3. Add Italian dressing packet and mix well.

4. Place chicken on bottom of crock pot and pour the cream cheese mixture over chicken.

5. Put crock pot on high for 4 hours or low for 6 hours.

Enjoy!

Drew is Crawling!

If I cried and cheered this much for a simple 6 inch crawl, I can't imagine how I'll respond when he takes his first step, or when it's his first day of school, or (*gasp*) when he gets married! Derek and I play with Drew every evening and knew that he was getting close to crawling. Well, I'm happy to report that last Saturday he took his first 'army crawl' towards our iPhones. Since then, he's gone after anything and everything I think he loves the freedome of moving where he wants to now.

Derek and I are so excited for our little man to be able to get to the toys that he wants to get to instead of becoming frustrated that he can't reach them! And while I realize that a lot of babies crawl earlier than 9.5 months, I turned out ok and personally didn't start crawling until I was 12 months old. I also didn't start walking until I was 15 months and walk/run/jog just fine now. Drew beat me by 2.5 months and for that I'm happy!

That means only one thing: "Mission Babyproof" commences this weekend! Any gadget tips and tricks are welcome to keeping my baby safe in this new stage of his development!

This Time Last Year

Last year on this exact day I was 29 weeks along and looked like this. None of my friends would tell me that I had fat face and everyone was so sweet saying I looked great. Obviously, they were all just trying to make the fat lady happy as I definitely had 'puffy' face! 

It's crazy how you can completely forget how being pregnant felt. I loved having a belly and knowing my little guy was safely tucked away at all times. It was a great feeling to know something was growing in there and the excitement increased (as did my fatty areas) with each weeks passing.

A year ago we were carefree and worrying about stupid details like if we had enough socks and mittens for the baby. If we only knew how much priorities and our lives would change. If we only knew how wonderful it was going to be when we actually met our baby and how he lights up our world every single day.

Can't wait to see what life will be like a year from now as I know it will be here quickly!

"Remember, everyday is a gift, that’s why they call it the present" ~Eleanor Roosevelt.

Crock Pot Potato Soup

My friend Michelle posts recipes time to time on her blog and when I read about her Crock Pot Potato Soup, I knew it had to be made now that the weather is crispy and the rain seems to linger. Well I made this tonight for dinner and it was DE-LI-CIOUS! Below is the recipe (but I only used a dash of red pepper).

INGREDIENTS

• 3 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

• 4 red potatoes, peeled & cut to ½ in. chunks

• 1/4 cup butter

• 1/2 onion, chopped

• 3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped

• 1/2 cup milk

• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

• 3 cups milk

• 1 cup sour cream

• 1/4 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

• 2 tablespoons seasoned salt

• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

• 1 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes

• 1/2 teaspoon celery salt

• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil chives for garnish (optional)

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat a large slow cooker by turning it to the High setting and covering with the lid.
2. Place the cut-up potatoes in a microwave safe bowl, and microwave on high for about 8 minutes, until the potatoes are cooked and steaming hot.
3. While the potatoes are cooking, place the butter in the preheated slow cooker, and stir in the onions and garlic for about 5 minutes, until the onions turn golden. Stir in 1/2 cup of milk, and whisk in the flour until smooth. Gradually whisk in the remaining 3 cups of milk, and let the mixture come to a simmer in the slow cooker. Simmer for about 10 minutes, until the soup begins to thicken.
4. Stir in the hot cooked potatoes, crumbled bacon, sour cream, Cheddar cheese, Parmesan cheese, seasoned salt, parsley, red pepper flakes, celery salt, and dried basil. Stir to mix the soup well, reduce the slow cooker setting to Low, cover, and cook for 3 hours, stirring occasionally. Sprinkle with chives and serve.

We chose to eat ours out of bread bowls from Breadsmith which made it even more scrumptious!

Belly Laugh

Happy Wednesday!

Hope you enjoy this deep, belly laugh as much as we do!

Finger Foods!

At our 9 month appointment a week ago, the doctor released us to let Drew have whatever we're eating, obviously in smaller portions. I'm not keen on anything really crunchy or hard just yet, but momma was excited to hear that I don't have to puree foods any longer! I'm proud to say that I made 100% of the food (except oatmeal) that Drew ate as a baby until he moved on to finger foods.

This week, we've already tried all kinds of fingers foods including pancakes, bananas, chicken, soup, bread, pears and even a smoothie made with organic, all natural yogurt, water and fruit! He is such a smart cookie and can pick up the tiniest thing and put it in his mouth. Derek and I can't get enough of his 'concentrating face' and we are loving exploring this new phase with him!

Spooky Pooch Parade

Who doesn't love thousands of dogs in costume parading the street? There was everything from 2 lb teacup pups to 200 pound beasts dressed in any and every costume imaginable. It was fun, humorous and very entertaining and Drew soaked it up!

Supposedly they were trying for a Guinness Book of World Record too with the number of dogs. Isn't that fun!

Chunky Monkey

So when we were at the doctors on Wednesday for Drew's appointment, we were told that his thighs were a 'nurses dream'. I would have to concur as I think they are super dreamy myself. I know they were referring to how much surface area and fat there is for the necessary flu shot, but I love them for their kissability. They are soft and feel like play-doo and I can't keep my hands off them!

I know they will eventually fade so I'm savouring every squeeze, munch, touch and kiss that I can get in with them!

Last Chance Month

Still one of the highlights of living in Cleveland, our gorgeous Metroparks exude vibrant colors and lung-cleaning air. The fall colors are so vivid and the crispy weather just perfect for a stroll with the family. I love our Sundays where we try and avoid the electronics and enjoy being outside as much as we can. The month of October seems to have become our 'last chance' month. It's our last chance to enjoy picnics in the park, long strolls with the dogs and working in the yard. The weather will soon turn to lip-chapping-fingertip-freezing cold, so before that hits, we soak up what we can.

You can see we're not the only ones that are trying to savour the weather. The Metroparks were full of forest animals, furry four-legged friends being walked by their owners and joggers enjoying the pavement pounding before the ice sets in. I snapped a couple pictures below, but they don't do justice to the sights.

Hope you're enjoying the fall weather and getting outside with your family!

9 Months Old

Happy 9 Months Drew!

Stats:
- Weight: 22 lbs 14 oz (75%)
- Height: 29.5 inches (90%)

Changes:
- Thankfully, Drew is still a sleeping angel continuously sleeping 12 hours a night still. He also naps generally twice a day for anywhere from an hour to three hours. We have been very blessed that he hasn't gotten sick except for an ear infection when he was 4 months old. Here's to hoping this streak continues!
- We have ventured out to chicken and eggs this month along with some other fruits and veggies we hadn't tried yet like grapes and mango. He is now eating three 'meals' a day.
- Drew has also mastered picking up Puffs and Yogurt Melts and feeding them to himself.
- Drew has really been working on the sippy cup and enjoys drinking from it, but still finds it hard to tip it up enough to get the last drink.
- He absolutely loves hearing his own voice. He sings to us all the time and tries so hard to talk.
- Drew has also worm his first pair of shoes a few times. Although the American Academy of Pediatrics doesn't recommend shoes until walking, we've dressed up a few outfits with his adorable little shoes!
- He can fully pivot on his tummy now doing a full circle! He also loves standing on his toys or the couch, but we are right behind him for when he falls.
- Drew is kicking all the time. Whether being held, on his tummy, or on his back he is always kicking. We think a future Michael Phelps might be in the making!
- Drew also LOVES wrestling and getting tickled by us.
- As far as clothes, he wears anywhere from 12m-24m!
- Lastly, he is still a wonderful traveler and really enjoys his car seat and Bob. We can take him out for hours and hours and he just enjoys people watching and getting fresh air.

Drew has also been praciticing his 'sexy' poses for his daycare girlfriend. Here he chose to show a little leg.

 Although I thoroughly enjoyed you being an 'inside' baby for 9 months, I have WAY more enjoyed having you on the 'outside' for just as long. Love you tons Drew!