I want an apple

We had a low key weekend. We went to eat at our favorite steak restaurant with Owen's parents on Friday. Andrew did so well at dinner. He played with his toys, drank a bottle and was so content hanging out with us. It was a very pleasant meal. Saturday we asked the Munton's if they would watch Andrew for us while we went to the movies. It was a rainy day and just seemed like a movie kind of day. We saw "The Other Guys". I would give it a 3 out of 5 stars. It wasn't the best movie, but it did entertain us for 2 hours.

I have decided to make the switch from a Blackberry user to an Iphone user. I NEVER thought those words would come out of my mouth. You see, I have been an avid Blackberry fan and owner of a blackberry since this phone came out.



But, I am being persuaded by the fun apps I can download. I am also being persuaded by the camera and how many pictures I can store on the phone. So I have committed to be being obsessed with the IPhone 4. And I am grown up enough to differentiate this as a want not a need. This is a huge development in my world because I usually need everything...but right now the purchase of a new phone is a definitely a want.

I went to the AT&T store on Saturday to look at them. I am sold...I just need to take the plunge. What I don't like about switching phones is I can't walk out of the store with a new phone. I have to wait up to 2 weeks for the phone to be mailed to me. That does not sit well with my instant gratification personality.

In other news Andrew has been pulling up on furniture for a while now and he is getting stronger day by day. Here are a couple of pictures of our sweet little man.

Smitten

The moment Andrew was born I was smitten. As the day comes and goes my heart is full of love for this little man. He is almost 9 months old and that is bringing a wave of emotions for me. I just want to hold him and cuddle with him. Last night when I was putting him to sleep I decided to take it all in. I get so caught up in the daily routine of life. You know the routine of dishes, lunches, dinner, etc... However last night I didn't care about any of those things. I just wanted to rock and hold my baby for as long as I could. So we did. It was a peaceful night of love and harmony.

Enjoy the pictures from the past week...


Grumpy man


Grumpy man no more


Pure joy for his best friend Ralphie


The sweetest smile around

Carrots...not really a success but not a failure

I gave Andrew the homemade carrots last night. They were a little too grainy for him. I mixed more water and that seemed to help a little. I may have to get creative with the other servings. Tonight is apples. I think they pureed a little better than the carrots did. I have never used a steamer before so I don't think I steamed the carrots long enough. He was a trooper though and didn't complain.

I joined

I joined the band wagon for making my own baby food. I started out small with carrots and apples. I got the steamer and the food processor as well ice trays. Saturday I steamed and pureed. Tonight, Andrew will eat my first attempt at healthy carrots. It wasn't hard. It was quite simple actually. But it reaffirmed to me that I am ignorant in the kitchen. Why does the kitchen intimidate me? Why does cooking healthy, well balanced meals throw me into a tizzy? Why can't I like all vegetables instead of the starchy vegetables only? How am I going to teach my son to eat his veggies if I don't eat mine? I have had panic attacks over this.

I will updated on how tonight goes with the carrots...

Love Erin

Fun Thursdays

We had play date yesterday and it was a lot of fun. I definitely enjoy play dates. Andrew and his friend don't interact with each other yet. Well...they crawl over each other and want the toy the other has, but other than that they are on separate sides of the room. It is actually funny. However, I enjoy play dates b/c I get to talk to a mommy friend.

Here is a picture of Andrew pulling up on his exersaucer. He doesn't love to sit in it and play with the toys, but standing up next to it and playing with the toys is a whole different kind of fun.

Day Care

It is no secret that I have mixed feelings about being a working mom. Those two words are words I hoped and prayed I would not have to say about myself. But that is my reality and I do like the paycheck. However, lately I have been feeling more emotional when I drop Andrew off in the morning. He tilts his head and watches me leave. He did not used to do that. On the flip side I love picking him up from day care. He gives me the biggest, most precious smile and I immediately pick him up for one his famous neck hugs. It is the high light of my day.

One day last week Andrew gave me a present when I picked him up. This is a perk of day care. I get artwork from my 8 month old. This is actually my 2nd piece of art from Andrew. The 1st one is already in his baby book.



The poem is a sweet one about how small he is now but that one day he will be big.

His artwork is on our refrigerator :)

Love Erin

Aaa Eee

I am quickly learning that as parents we think our kids do more than they are probably doing...but our little man has referred to Ralphie as Aaa Eee on a couple of occasions. Yes, those are the syllables he is saying right now. But we do say Ralphie's name probably 100 times a day. So Andrew hears it alot. But I do like to think that these two best friends are communicating.

Just look at their expressions of love...

2458

2458 that is how many people commented on the blog I read "Enjoying the Small Things". I can't imaging reading that many comments. I also can't imagine being as cleaver, creative and articulate as Kelle Hampton. I do enjoy her blog. I even commented today b/c she was giving away $75 towards jewelry. I felt compelled to comment but then I realized how many other people felt compelled to comment and I became overwhelmed. It isn't even my blog. I still can't imagine having that many people read my blog. Or better yet, I can't imagine coming up with ideas, topics, and stories that thousands of people would want to read. I guess that is why I have our family blog as a private website. I know people who read what is happening in our life are close friends and family. There is something sweet about that thought as well.

Love Erin

Comfort Food

Why does certain food make a sad, bad, frustrated mood go away? Even when you know the "comfort" food is bad for you. Just a question I ask myself from time to time. Especially when I ate a big bowl of cookies and cream ice cream with magic shell topping for dessert last night to get rid of the negative vibes of the day. I really think ice cream and prayer go along away when you need happiness in life.

Weekend Happenings

This past weekend was a good one even though we made a trip to the pediatric clinic. My little man has had a stuffy nose but on Saturday he woke up with more congestion than I thought he should have. So on Saturday morning we took him to see the doctor. No cold, just alot of sinus congestion. The doctor put him on a general antibiotic to clear it up and so far so good. He is also getting 2 maybe 4 top teeth. He is handling the teething well this time around. After the doctor's appointment we ran errands and then I got ready to go meet my good college friend Whitney in Meridian for dinner. We met at 4 pm for the early bird special :) It was so great seeing her. We talked and talked and talked until we wore out our welcome at the restaurant. It was so good to have girl talk with a friend you know so well. I love being able to pick up where we left off a year ago. I brought my camera to take a picture of us, but somehow managed to leave without taking a picture.

Owen and Andrew had boys night while I was gone on Saturday. Owen sent me this picture of one tired little man.



There is something so sweet about a sleeping baby, especially when he is yours.

Sunday we went to Owen's cousin's house for a house warming party. Her family built a new home and it was very nice. Andrew had fun hanging out with his 2nd cousins. They loved watching him crawl and interact with him. We talked about how much fun Andrew will be at Christmas b/c he will be more mobile.

After the house warming party we went to dinner with Owen's parents. It was a perfect weekend of friends and family. I love weekends like this one.

Swimming Lessons

Yesterday was our last swimming lesson. I am very proud of Andrew. He is not afraid of the water which was the main goal for the lesson. I am going to miss having something to do every night after work with our little man. But I am also glad to get back on a schedule with our routine at home. I haven't wanted to cook or do anything but get Andrew ready for bed. Now I can concentrate on healthy meals for Owen and me and clean the house up a bit. I have been so tired when we get home that I am useless. Again, with all that said...we will miss our Brantley play dates and conversations with mom, Amanda. We will start our Thursday play dates again next week.

Andrew was a lucky little man yesterday. His dad, Grandy and Gramps all came to see him swim. Even his Uncle Mike (my boss) came to watch.

I am glad it is the weekend. Quitting time can't get here fast enough today.

Love Erin

8 month updates (continue)

I completely forgot to add that Andrew is now waving bye-bye and he is clapping his hands.His face lightens up when he hears the clap sound. He loves to bang things and make noise. A co-worker gave Andrew a bongo and he loves it. His daddy also loves the bongo and they have Friday night "jam" sessions.

8 months old

Photo shoots are getting harder by the month









Andrew is 8 months old! My little man is growing up so fast and healthy. We are truly blessed. I feel like the luckiest mom being Andrew's mom. Here are a few new facts about my little man.

* He is crawling...the army crawl that is
* He is pulling up on any object he can
* He eats his fruits and veggies with no fuss
* He is on the high end of formula intake at 5 bottles of 8 oz a day. Next week I am going work on getting that to 4 bottles every 4 hours
* He LOVES the water.
* He is saying more sounds now and is making a clicking sound
* He laughs loud and will even hunch over in laughter
* He loves Ralphie and we are now saying..."Andrew leave Ralphie alone" instead of "Ralphie leave Andrew alone". We have noticed Andrew is the instigator.
* He is working on more teeth, but still only has his 2 bottom teeth
* Andrew gives the best hugs
* He is a happy, content, and love-able baby boy


I love him so much

Swimming Lessons (Week 2)

This is our last week of swimming lessons. I definitely have a fish on my hands. Andrew loves the water and he moves like a frog in it. It is so cute. He gets really excited, smiles, and laughs the whole time. I love it.

Here are a few pics Brantley's dad took of us.

Birthday Celebrations

Owen and I went to New Orleans this weekend for his birthday. My parents came to Hattiesburg to watch Andrew. They had fun watching him and we had a nice weekend away. Owen's birthday gift was....



A helicopter tour that is :) Owen LOVES helicopters so I got him a tour of New Orleans. We got a birds eye view of the Mississippi River, places the hurricane flooded, downtown, the superdome (at eye level). It was a great experience for both of us.


A shadow of the helicopter

After our tour we went to lunch on Magazine Street. We went to a pizzeria and sat at the window so we could people watch. Then we went to a local bike shop and Owen bought a new bike. He recently sold a bike so he wanted to replace that one with a new bike that he can ride on or off the road. The new bike has medium tires for him to ride to work easier.

Then the other high light of our trip was going to dinner at the Chef John Besh's Restaurant August. To say this meal was good is an understatement. It was one of the BEST meals I have ever eaten. I am very plain when it comes to food but I told my self I was going to branch out with this meal. We ordered the chef tasting menu and I got mine with the wine pairing. It was delicious.


A picture of us before date night

On Sunday we woke up early like we always do. I was hoping to sleep in but that didn't happen, so we got ready, went to eat at Cafe Du Monde, went to church and then headed home to see our sweet baby boy.

It was such a good, relaxing and enjoyable weekend. I was exhausted yesterday from all the fun...so that tells you what a positive weekend it was. :)