Sibling Class

Last night we took Sydney to a sibling class at our local hospital. The kids got to make a door hanger for the nursery complete with a picture of big sis. Sydney did not want to put a message on it but she added lots of pretty stickers to the front and back and I helped with the handle and her picture.

Finished product, too bad she held it in front of her face so you cannot see how proud she is.

Sydney practicing putting a diaper on a baby. She did a good job but daddy helped a bit.

Notice her tongue is out in each photo because she is really concentrating.

Yeah we got it!

The class was very fun. We watched a video about being a big sibling and about babies. We had a snack and read a book about babies. Then we went upstairs to the nursery and saw a new baby and also a birthing room. It was a good experience and at the end Sydney got a certificate.

Coming Soon!

A major attraction is coming soon....can you guess. Bill and I traveled a bit this past weekend and started working on this new attraction. We used lots of tools, Bill his big hammer and me my scrap booking hammer. Bill laughed at me but it really did work well. Please leave a comment with your guess as to what the attraction may be... Pictures soon.

Headphones and bellies

Sydney wearing headphones on her belly! She has seen me with headphones on my belly for Griffin to listen to baby classical music so now she wants to wear the headphones.













So cute!
















32.5 weeks pregnant. Hard to believe the time has gone by so fast. I am trying to savor every moment but I must admit I am getting tired. My back is hurting more and more and it is getting harder to get up and down and in and out of bed. I am not sure the last time I slept all night and I am not sure when the next time I will sleep all night. I am not complaining or maybe I am but really I am so blessed and thankful to be having a wonderful pregnancy.

I was sitting on the floor with Sydney a few nights ago doing puzzles and I told her I really needed to sit on the couch because it hurt my back to sit on the floor. Of course she asked "why?" and I told her because Griffin is in my belly and he is getting heavy. She told me to call Dr. Brooks (my OB) and tell her to get baby Griffin out so I can sit on the floor and play with her. So funny.

So far no swelling in the ankles but I am sure it will happen.

Bits and pieces of conversation

Sydney and I had a rather interesting conversation last night at dinner. She cracks me up. Our conversation went something like this:

Me: Did you have a good day?

Sydney: Don't talk about it.

Me: So how did you get that boo boo on your knee?

Sydney: Coulter pushed me and I fell down.

Me: Why did he push you?

Sydney: He does not like me.

Me: Why doesn't he like you?

Sydney: He does not like me.

This part of the conversation was while eating some salad. So I got up to dish out spaghetti and meatballs and Syd started to have a huge fit.

Me: Why are you crying?

Syd: crying.........Sit by me.

Me: I will sit by you as soon as I get our dinner on our plates. Please stop having a fit.

Syd: Sit by me. still crying.

Phone rings...its daddy, want to say hello to him. Still crying. I answer the phone and briefly talk to Bill. I put dinner on the table.

Syd: I am done having a fit now.

Me: Good I do not like fits. Lets eat dinner.

Syd: When I am a big girl I am going to wear deodorant and chew gum.

Me: Yes you will.

So funny.. my kid cracks me up. She remembers things and brings them up weeks later. Her mind is very sharp of course I am biased.

Surfs Up

We kept seeing kids with these surf boards on the beach and decided to buy one for Sydney. She had a blast!!

Can you see the tongue?

Look at those little biscuits.. she is just so cute. When a wave would knock her off she would laugh and climb back on the board.

Sydney loved riding the waves! Unfortunately the waves got rough due to Hurricane Bill and the next 2 days they had the red flag up which means no swimming so we did not get to use the board anymore this trip.

The Splash

The Splash water park- view from our condo, 14 stories up.

Lots of fun for kids of all ages (and adults)!

Syd and Bill in the Lazy River, very relaxing.

Sydney loves to just crawl around in the water and go under waterfalls and the slides.

Sydney and I coming down the slide!

Wow, what a ride. She was too little to go by herself although I know she would have. Lots of adults were going down by themselves it was so much fun!

Here they come...

Now you know why they call it the Splash!!

This water park was free with our condo since it is right on site. We had access to the beach, water park and several pools. We had a blast!

Fun in the Sun

Well we have been missing in action for the last week but we are home. It is truly always good to be home, there is no place like home. So where were we? We were at the beach!! It just cracks Bill and I up when people around here say "oh yeah we are going to the beach for the weekend." This comment is very similar to the way people in Indiana would say they were going to the lake for the weekend. The ocean is about a 3 hour drive from our house so yes it is something you could do on a weekend but we usually make it a longer trip. This past week was the 33rd annual North Carolina Academy of Physician Assistants conference at Myrtle Beach. We stayed in a wonderful condo on the 14th floor (Bill did not think this was so wonderful) and had a blast. It was a very relaxing vacation. The conference is great for people with small kids because all the lectures are available on your TV so whether it is just too early to crawl out of bed and get dressed to go down to the lecture hall or it is nap time for Syd, I was able to tune in a catch a course or 2. We indeed had lots of fun in the sun and RELAXED!!!!!

Every year that we have gone to the beach we try to get a photo with Sydney and her name in the sand. She did not want to smile in this photo and the sun was bright so she is squinting. Oh well.

Syd in the sand, notice the tongue! So cute. Whenever she is really concentrating she has her tongue out, cracks me up.

Daddy joins in the fun of playing in the sand!

Sydney loves the waves. I wish you could hear her squealing!

Finishing touches

Well here are the towels I had personalized for the kids bathroom. In case you did not already know our little boy's name will be Griffin Sawyer. Sydney is excited about the new towels and that they have their names written on them. I still need something cute for the shelf on the cabinet above the towels but I have not found anything yet.

7 years and dough

Have you ever been to Bravo? It is very similar to Macaroni Grill or Olive Garden. We do not have a Bravo in the town we live in but there is one about 35 minutes away. My husband and I decided to go to Bravo last weekend to celebrate our 7th year anniversary. If you ever go to Bravo ask the waitress or waitor for dough.

Giving your kid a section of raw dough will keep your child busy for... hmm the entire meal...or the entire day. The kids can shape the dough into something creative and then they will bake it in the oven and bring it back to your table.

Sydney's dough never made it to the oven. She had way too much fun playing with it raw to bake it. We made snacks... specifically burmese pythons, worms, eggs, and all sorts of other creatures.

It was great because it was our anniversary and we were able to have a conversation! We were going to leave Syd with a sitter but Bill had worked the previous day and so he really had not seen her all weekend. She is usually very well behaved at a restaurant and will sit still for an hour or so if we take things to help occupy her. I may consider taking dough in the future... just kidding. When it was time to go Sydney was still creating so we ended up taking the dough with us and she held onto it all the way home and played with it for a few hours at home.

Can you tell I am 7 months pregnant in this photo? Bill and I have so few pics of us together because we are always taking pics of Syd. Seven years of marriage! It is hard to believe that much time has passed. I feel so blessed to have met my husband. We have had a wonderful 7 years together and we are looking forward to many more.

Frittata

Last night we had a frittata for dinner. We are busy during the week mornings trying to get out the door on time so breakfast is quick and Bill is in charge of feeding Sydney. Every now and then we have a big breakfast for dinner. Frittatas are easy and a one pan meal. You can very the ingredients to your liking or what you happen to have on hand. This is the recipe for the frittata we had last night. It is important to cook in a skillet that can be transferred to the oven, or wrap the handle well with aluminum foil.

peel and slice 2 potatoes, cook in large skillet with a bit of vegetable oil until soft (fried potatoes)

I added some finely sliced onion and green pepper to my potatoes as they cooked. Then turn skillet off and add egg mixture. I scrambled 5-6 eggs, 1 tsp dijon mustard, sliced ham, salt and pepper. Top with cheese. Then tranfer to oven and bake at 350 until puffy and golden on top. We had sliced tomatoes on top of our frittata, and I also served it with bananas, apples and english muffins. Yummy.

Some other ideas ingredients we have tried- spinach, salsa, mushrooms, really anything you would put in an omelet.

Oatmeal Buttermilk Waffles

We often eat this for dinner since we do not have time for an involved breakfast during the week. It does require a bit of planning since you need to soak the oatmeal.



1 C uncooked old fashioned oatmeal

2 C buttermilk ( I buy fat free)

1/2 C white flour

1/2 C whole wheat flour

2 T. vegetable oil

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

3 egg whites



Serve with butter and syrup or fruit topping (strawberries or peaches)



Soak oatmeal in buttermilk 1/2 hour- 24 hours (I usually soak over night) in refrigerator. Add flours, oil, baking powder and soda, mix well. In separate bowl beat egg whites until stiff, fold into oatmeal flour mixture. Preheat waffle iron.



Per waffle without topping: Cal 177, Sodium 417 mg, Fiber 3 gram, Total fat 5 gram, Sat Fat 1 gram, Cholesterol 2 mg.

Great crockpot recipe

Pulled pork tacos! This recipe serves a crowd or if you have a family our size you will have leftovers.



1 onion chopped

1 red pepper chopped

1 green pepper chopped

1 can green chilies

1 can diced tomatoes

1 can whole corn or 1 bag frozen

1 and 1/2 tsp garlic powder

2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp oregano

1/4-1/2 cayenne pepper

1 pork shoulder roast or picnic roast (3.5 lbs), trim all visible fat





tomato paste 3 Tablespoons

cilantro

cheese

tortillas

sour cream

avocados



Put all top ingredients in crock pot, spoon mixture over top of meat. Cook on high for 5 hours. Remove pork from crock pot and shred meat (it falls apart). Remove most of water from crock pot 1-2 cups. Add 3 tablespoons of tomato paste to mixture in crock pot, add shredded meat back in and stir. Cook on high 30 more minutes! Serve on tortillas like tacos garnishing with your favorite toppings.



Last night I had some mexican rice but I have also served it by itself since it has all sorts of veggies in the mix. This recipe has some spice but is not too hot. Sydney loves it and so does Bill.

29 weeks

I am 29 weeks pregnant plus a few days! I went to the doctor yesterday and all is well. My belly measured 29 cm which is perfect and my baby boys heart rate was 163. She said I can continue to walk my two miles in the am. I walk with my neighbor every morning at 5:45. Having a partner keeps me accountable. I must say it is getting more difficult though, North Carolina is a rather hilly state at least where we live. I find myself winded by the time I get to the top of a few hills. I guess in the back of my mind I thought I would have to stop walking by now because by this time with Sydney I was dilating and not allowed to do much besides work. I am thankful that so far I have not had any issues and I am able to keep upright. I cannot imagine having to go home and put my feet up. My routine is to pick up Sydney after work, feed her and I dinner, start cleanup, tubbie time, playtime and stories, bed for Syd and then finish cleaning up and doing a few chores around the house. My husbands arrival time is variable so I am often in charge. I can usually get down to relax around 830 or 9 depending on how many things I tackle but I just cannot imagine trying to put my feet up right after getting home. Sydney is pretty good with bedtime most nights, after a few stories, we sing songs, say prayers and then I usually have to lay with her for "2 minutes". Some nights like last night I have to make a few trips upstairs after I have put her to bed. Usually she has 1 or 2 of the following excuses "I have to poop, " cover me up", "one more kiss", or she miss places something in her bed and cannot find it.

Flight Partner

Sydney was my flight partner again! She and I flew to Maine to see my sister when Syd was about 6 months old. She will not remember that trip but I think she will remember this last flight to Michigan. She is a great flier! The only thing she did not care for was going through airport security and taking off her shoes? The change in altitude did not bother her ears and she actually sat still and behaved. She sat by the window on all three flights (1 on the way there and 2 on the way back). She enjoyed playing with the tray table and also the air vents. Snack time was a treat because I usually do not allow her to drink juice but they do not have milk on planes so she had diluted juice. We colored, red books and played with her memory game. I would not hesitate to fly with her again.