7.28.2011

Summer Pool Fun!

Yesterday Ethan and I made the trek to Mount Angelus to hang our with our favorite kid-friend Rosemary (and her awesome mom Heather). Ethan and Rosemary are about the same temperament, and let's just say Heather and I definitely see eye to eye on parenting techniques haha. Ethan loved their cute dog, but I unfortunately didn't get any good pictures of them together. However, Ethan and Rosemary had a great time doing things like: banging on the front door, play with tambourines, chasing the dog, banging on the front door, swimming, crawling out of swimming pool and banging on the back door. Can you see a recurring theme here?




 That awesome pool I got for 12 bucks at Target, it was quite a deal!

7.26.2011

Scrapbooking!!!

Today I had Kristen and Suz come over. We originally intended to watch a ton of Sons of Anarchy episodes, great show by the way. Instead we had an impromptu scrabookinf sesh. I really wish I had taken a picture of Suz's page, it was totally cute and way beyond my level of experience. I totally stick with simple mats and stickers. Suz has a Cricut, which I am totally lusting over now. I made this cute little mouse with it:





Now I totally want one (yeah right). They seem pretty handy with a ton of cool uses. I've started working on my Bridal Shower scrapbook (so long ago already!) and once that's done I'll move on to my Wedding and then finally Ethan's baby book. I bought one of the books you write in and paste pictures in, but I really want to get creative with his.

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7.18.2011

Weekend Update

Well we had quite a busy weekend. To start off, Ethan has a horrible diaper rash - we're talking red and oozing. So he has been a bit of a pill this last weekend. We went to Target and got some Beaurdeaux's Butt Paste, which seems to be working well. While at Target I got three plain tank tops for 6 bucks each, which was pretty darn awesome I must say. I also got a pair of capris for 15 bucks. I don't know if the sale is still going on, but it is so worth it to stop by and see whatever have!

So that was Friday, we rented Rango because nobody had said they were going to come over, but I never got to watch it because Suz, Miles and Kristen came over with the intention of playing Carcassonne. Carcassonne is my latest obsession, it's much like Settlers of Catan - you build your cities out of tiles and get victory points for every city, road, and farm you complete. I have the app on my phone - it looks like this:



I'd rotate the picture but that would require me to get on my comp, which I haven't done for at least two weeks ( thank you iPhone). It's a pretty neat game, if you can buy the app I'm sure you'd enjoy it.

So Saturday we went and saw the final Harry Potter film in the theater, it was matinee so only 12 bucks! Amazing to see a movie and not shell out 25. I really enjoyed it, I can't say how close to the final book it was because it's been so long since I read it. I'm thinking of getting the ebooks, but its going to have to wait until I am finished with "A Song of Ice and Fire", which is what the HBO series "A Game of Thrones" is based off of.

Sunday we had Austine's parents and siblings over. We played kinect and they loved it. They are thinking about buying one, which would be neat. There are a lot of kid friendly games on that system. The cousins then came over and brought the new Mortal Kombat (speaking of kid friendly lol). It looks really fun, I haven't really gotten the chance to try it out yet though. It was nice to watch people playing yet still have fun, something I can't really say for Call of Duty (gag).

Anyhow that was our exciting weekend! <3 - Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

7.14.2011

Mommy App # 1~ Baby Bix

When was the last time junior slept? How much did he eat? Is he getting enough sleep at night? Baby Bix is really great at helping Mom's remember, which definitely isnt our strong suit.

Baby Bix tracks feedings, diapers, sleep schedule, solids and more. It is really easy and covienient to track. You can either use the quick entry tab (which is easiest if your logging it right that second)






Or you can go back and set past events. Helpful if you were in a sleep deprived stupor at 3 AM. You can also log in via their website and track, and even email the logs. It's very handy, I wish I had it way back when I was a nanny. It would have made the communication between the parents and I much more efficient.







Handy summary page.








Ethan's sleep schedule so far today.








Baby Bix also tracks weight, height, and head measurements, along with firsts. As you can see, E is a tall dude :)

I totally recommend this app to any mom. You can get it through the iTunes app stores, and guess what? It's free!

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7.13.2011

Playdate

Ethan and I had a great time today hanging out with some other moms. It was really nice to see him interact with other kids, for the most part they got along great! I can't wait to do it again.





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7.11.2011

My new project!

It's been pretty widespread knowledge around here that A and I are dirt broke. When we first moved into our house, it was really barebones minimum. We had a couch (free) and a TV in our living room, that was it. Somehow we have managed to slowly improve our living conditions from additions here and there. I am always on the lookout for a great deal; I feel even if we were well off we wouldn't spend huge amounts on the furniture we need.

So while the living room is pretty comfortable, the dining room has bee horribly neglected. I have a vision for this room, but I just haven't been able to play it out completely. Here are a few photos to show you it's sad state.







Lonely black sconces







Tan curtains that really fit into my scheme.







Unframed picture that A's great grandma painted.

For a long time in the beggining of our marriage, the dining room had no table, we were eating off of plywood. Then A's cousin's girlfriend's sister gave us a small apartment sized table. It was great to have a table finally, but it was really tiny. We like to have company over, and it was near impossible to eat at this table without bumping elbows. Then my parents gave us one of those long card tables for Christmas, because we had nowhere to put anyone for Thanksgiving (which I did for the first time, with a 2 month old - but that's another story). So we eventually sold the small table and started to use the card table- it was ugly but way bigger!

Yesterday I found the table that was meant to be in the dining room. We were going home from church and I spied it on the other side of the street, I made A turn around (thank gosh!). Here is what I saw…








It's not the ideal color, and it's pretty scratched up. The detail on it is awesome though.





















I originally was going to paint it black, as that was my original plan for the room. But now that it's in the house, I can see that doing that would ruin it. It would be a terrible shame to cover that grain up. Instead I am going to strip and sand it, and stain it a dark walnut. I may reupholster the seats, it depends on the finished product.

The best part? I only paid 80 bucks for everything! After buying stain, sandpaper, and varnish (I'm planning on a matte finish) I'll have only paid about 150 bucks total for a beautiful table.

I'm kinda patting myself on the back right now. Stay tuned for the finished product!

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7.10.2011

BlogPress awesomeness

Some of the cool features of BlogPress (an iPhone app for creating blogs) is the ability to add pictures and video straight from my phone! I sense that you guys will be hearing a lot more from me in the future .






Ethan loves his jumper!






Already a movie addict…








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I know it's been a while...


So yes. I've been horribly absent from the blogosphere for quite a while. To be honest, things have gotten really busy these past few months!

Ethan is now 9 months old, eating solids like a pro, pulling up, and crawling everywhere! I know there isn't much time until he is walking. We have semi-child proofed, but we still have a ways to go.

We have good news! The company A has been working for has finally (after 6 long months of probation) decided to hire him on full-time. It's been a long, 2 year, road to this point. We can now finally start focusing on paying off our credit cards and starting to save - at long last! We also will be enjoying full benefits, especially after not having any insurance for 6 years!

Weight wise I've maintained but not gained. Dissapointing but true. I am trying now to lose more of the weight with www.myfitnesspal.com. It really is one of the best nutrition and exercise trackers out there - even over sparkpeople. They have apps for the android and iPhone that are pretty amazing and effective.

Speaking of iPhones, I have joined the cult! I really do love this phones, and I feel like the apps you can get greatly improve the way I live my life. I'm going to post soon on some of my favorite iPhone apps geared toasted moms, trust me you will love them!


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