I'm 7 Months Old! {Jack's Take Tuesday}

 

Hello my dear friends,

I wanted to inform you all that as of May 21, 2011 I am officially 7 months old.  Why does that date sound so familiar, you ask?  Because it was "Dooms Day" and man am I glad that guy was wrong.  I love being 7 months old!  It's the best thing since I turned 6 months.

I am so glad because I am not sick yet...that was awful!  I got sick twice in a row.  I had a cough, a virus, and an ear infection.  I couldn't go to Bible Class and I love Bible Class.  Thankfully I got on some good medicine so I got better and could play with my cousin.

I am doing all kinds of fun things...

I say Da Da (and Ma Ma, but only when I am really mad).  I say it all the time when he's home.  It's probably because he takes my bottle until I say it.  He's not above bribery.

I roll all over the floor.  I still don't understand why my parents are so insistent on me crawling.  I roll and inch-worm on my back and do just fine.  My parents bought me a kennel.  I'll be honest, I am not a fan.  I used to could scoot all over the living room, but now I am confined.

I am just getting back to all of those good foods.  My medicine made me not very hungry.

I am growing growing growing!  I had those stinking shots, but the nurse told me I measure just over 2 feet tall and weigh 14.3 lbs.  My Mommy always talks about my chubby knees.  She's so embarrassing.

I sit up really well.  I can't get there on my own yet, but I can stay up right for awhile.

Until next time...

Homemade Baby Food #7: Apples & Pears {Mommy Monday}

This is actually something that you should make at the very beginning.  I have had these recipes documented ever since I made them, I just wasn't thinking or I would have put these first.  Anyway, the apple and the pear are the most gentle for your baby's belly.  They do tend to have opposite effects on their digestive system.  Pears ease constipation, so if your baby is a little stopped up...give him some pears.  Apples on the other hand, can stop them up.  Oh the joys. 

Apples & Pears:

The directions for cooking these are the same.  I will demonstrate with the apples, but know that pears are no different.

First thing, you wash,quarter and core your apples.

I used a bag of organic apples.  I know that organic means no pesticides, but these were so spotted I had to use the whole bag to get enough.  Choose your battles.

My handsome kitchen helper.

You put the apple quarters in a steamer basket over 1 inch of boiling water.

Cover with a tight fitting lid and cook until the apples are soft, around 15 minutes.

When finished cooking, allow to cool completely.  

After this step you allow them to cook and you scrape the flesh from the skin and puree until smooth.  If it is too think, add water until you reach the desired consistency.

Refrigerate for 3 days or freeze for 3 months.

Homemade Baby Food #6: Mango {Mommy Monday}

Hello All,

Today we will be making a mango puree for our babes.  Mine LOVES mango.  It is very sweet, if you wait for it to ripen all the way, and very juicy.  It can make a mess, so just be ready with an empty dishwasher and a washcloth handy.  I hope your kiddos like this.

Mango:

All you really need for this is a blender, a knife, a spoon, a cutting board and a mango.

If you do not know how to cut up a mango, I would recommend looking it up.  It is a sticky process, so I didn't fully demonstrate.

This is one of the best things we got for our wedding, an avocado slicer!  I love it and use it all the time.  I used it instead of a spoon to scrape out the flesh.  I don't know if it was the best idea, but it worked!

Take all the meat and blend it together.  I didn't add any water because it was so juicy.

As you can see, this didn't make very much.  I would also recommend doing several mangos at a time :)

Store in the refrigerator for 3 days or freeze for 3 months.

Bon Bon Came to Play {Jack's Take Tuesday...Wednesday}

Hello Everyone,

I just want you to know, that I know, that it is Wednesday and not Tuesday.  Let me just tell you, I had a very big day, yesterday.  I am plum-tuckered, but I got up this morning so I could share this with you.  I am so tired because my cousin Bonnie came to play with me.  And we have fun!  I just love my cousins.

She is a party animal.

She wasn't really in the mood to look at my Mommy's camera, but she sure loves to look at me!  She says my name and kisses me ALL the time.

 She even got to wear the boots that Uncle Andy, Aunt Pudzi, and my Mommy all wore.

Gramps wanted a picture of both of us in our boots...we may have to try this again.  Her dress tasted pretty good.

She sure has a lot of tutus

I think I have the prettiest girl cousins in the world.

She loves my Jeep!  We really play pretty well together, in my opinion.  I tell my parents not to hold their breath, because when we get older, I'm pretty sure we'll gang up on them.

She likes to eat bananas.

Chalkboard Paint + Refrigerator {Mommy Monday}

So, I had been thinking about this project since we moved in and I finally was able to pull it off!  I love crafts and painting, that was the only downside to being pregnant, was I couldn't paint my house or do crafts that involve that beautiful smelling paint.  Anyway, I will show you how to transform your refrigerator into a play space for your kiddos or a message board.  I have so many more ideas for this stuff!

Our fridge is stainless on the front and so the sides are magnetic.  One side is exposed for all of the world to see and it is usually cluttered with mail.  This was very refreshing to clean it off for step #1.  

#1  Remove everything...and I mean everything.  Then wipe it down completely, try to use a cloth that won't leave fibers behind.

I bought this 1qt can of Rust-oleum Chalkboard paint and used a brush we had lying around.  I would recommend using a rolling brush instead.  In fact the box recommends that, but I didn't have one and I was motivated to get this done.

#2  Put down newspaper so you do not drip onto your kitchen floor.

#3  Paint on a coat and allow to dry before you apply the second.  I believe I applied 3 coats.

#4  You have to let it sit for a very long time, I think it was days.  I went out of town for the birth of my niece and when I got back it was ready.

#5  When it has dried sufficiently (Please do not just take my advice, read the box) you need to "season" your new chalkboard.  If you don't know what that means, I guarantee you it was probably a game you played if you were ever hanging out after school in a classroom unsupervised.  You take the chalk on its side and rub it all over the surface.  This allows a small layer of chalk to be left behind after you wipe most of it off, so you can erase easily.

#6  Use to your heart's content!  This is a picture I took with my phone when my son was dealing with a virus and an ear infection.  I wrote his meds and times he took them on the fridge so I could keep up with  them.  

Happy Crafting!

Ready For Take-Off: Plane etiquette {Mind Your Manners Thursday}

I don't know why, but this morning I had a flash back to last summer when I flew down to meet Andrew in Houston.  I was 7 months pregnant with Jack and knew I was not going to travel well.  I sat down by this nice man who seemed like the kind of guy who would keep to himself, so I thought.  We did the typical (polite) small talk and when he found out I was pregnant, he started giving me his entire opinion on pregnancy, birth, and parenting.  Again, he was very nice, he just talked way to much!  Some people would probably like this to distract them from the flight, me, I go straight to sleep because I get terribly motion sick...especially prego.  His talking caused my nausea to accelerate and as soon as we landed I knew I would be heading straight to the bathroom.  However, the plane had to taxi in several circles and right as the light came on for us to unbuckle our seat belts, I had to use the doggy bag.  The second flight didn't get much better.

So, in honor of my terrible memory, I have a few things to keep in mind next time you travel...

Bare-Foot Mamma's Top 10 Rules For Air Travel:

1)  Keep the talking to a minimum, unless your seat partner seems really interested, but remember, they may just be trying to be nice.

2)  If you do talk, be quiet!

3)  We all know traveling with kids is hard (I haven't had to do it yet, but I am dreading it already) so be kind to the parents if they are trying to do their best to keep their kids in line.

4)  Parents, an airport is not a vacation for you, make sure your children aren't annoying anyone.  I once had a child in squeeker shoes dump crackers in my lap in a terminal because their parents decided they didn't need to watch their darling little girl.

5)  Keep your knees and feet out of the back of the seat in front of you.

6)  Reclining your seat an inch isn't that helpful anyway, so think about how your seat back is in the face of the person behind you.

7)  Never bring you pets on the plane!!!  I have a terrible cat allergy and I my eyes were starting to itch and water and I couldn't figure out why...the lady next to me had a cat.  I didn't know they could even do that!  They take peanuts off the plane, but allow cats?

8)  Be nice to the flight attendants.  They are doing their best and they have most likely dealt with several rude people before they get to you, so give them a break.

9)  Say Thank You as you leave the plane.

10)Do NOT, and I repeat, do NOT bring any kind of smelly or crunchy food on the plane.  It affects everyone.


These may seem negative, and I apologize, but I am trying to save you from other people talking bad about you when you leave the plane and the airport.

A Few 6 Month Pictures and a Trip to the Farm {Jack's Take Tuesday}

This past weekend I got to make my first trip up to Lead Hill, AR to my Great Grandparents' farm.  My Mommy was telling me all kinds of stories from all the times she has gone up there.  She loved going to feed the cows and swinging on the swing and damming up the creek and floating shotgun shells down it like boats.  I was so excited to get to see this amazing place!  

Everybody was working hard on moving things around so Mommy and Daddy traded off watching me.  The rain was about to start so Mommy was only able to snap a few of just me.

I'm pretty sure I could make it up here.

For some reason my Mommy thinks I need to have a lot of pictures documenting my first year...crazy lady.  What is she going to do with all of these.

I love this little bench.  We got to bring it back to our house so now I can sit on it all the time when I get bigger!

I sure hope I get to go back soon!

Here are some pictures from when my Mommy and Daddy went a few years ago.  You can tell because my puppies are very little.