New Post

I just posted Eli's 3 month birthday post, backdated to the 19th. You'll have to scroll down to th to see it. I think it's worth the scroll to see Eli in his Johnny Cash shirt. Not that I'm biased.

8 things...

I was tagged by my friend Meredith...

8 things I'm looking forward to...
1. My dad and stepmom coming to visit for the first time since we've lived here.
2. Praising Makenna tomorrow for sleeping in her big girl bed all night long
3. A good night's sleep.
4. The numbers on my scale dropping...I KNOW it will happen!
5. Figuring out what's wrong with our house and it's numerous plumbing issues.
6. A trip to Colorado.
7. A possible childfree getaway with my husband
8. A girls night out in July, that's already in the planning phase.

8 things I did yesterday...
1. danced!
2. ran a couple errands
3. met friends for lunch, with lots of kiddos in tow
4. Bought sex kitten shoes, which I'll be returning because they're too big. I didn't realize they slid off my heel in the store because I tried them on so quickly. Shopping with 3 kids is difficult.
5. loaded the dishwasher
6. a load of laundry
7. missed my son's baseball game
8. laughed. A lot.

8 things I wish I could do...
1.be more of a risk taker
2. run a marathon
3. shop till I drop
4. Paint my living room and kitchen.
5. buy a bunch of new furniture
6. go back to school
7. build a house from the ground up
8. work out (technically, I know I CAN do this, it's just a matter of finding the time.)

8 shows I watch...
1. Criminal Minds
2. Private Practice
3. Design Inc.
4. Real Housewives of Orange County
5. Amazing Race
6. Survivor
7. House Hunters
8. Flip this House

8 people I tag...
1. Kim @ http://www.simpsonmama.blogspot.com/
2. Tasha @ http://chaoswithadashofsanity.blogspot.com/
3. Julie @ http://rocknrulemama.blogspot.com/
4. Sheryl @ http://ssgriebel.blogspot.com/
5. Rachel @ http://thebeasleyfamily.blogspot.com/
6. Jacy (even though her blog is private)
7. Ellen @ http://mom2chaos.blogspot.com/
8. Christina @ http://kennedyandcatesmomma.blogspot.com/

Cooking Thursday

Ryan, my boy who would eat anything I served him (including raw red onions) until he was 4, is a PICKY eater. He's a carb fiend and the only vegetable I can get into him with any consistency is raw carrots. So, being a sneaky mom, I've been looking for recipes for muffins, breads and cookies that have veggies in them. I had a bunch of zucchini in the fridge about to go bad so today's experiment was Zucchini-Lemon Muffins.

Zucchini-Lemon Muffins

2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 cup sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

2 teaspoons grated lemon rind

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon nutmet

1 cup coursely shredded zucchini

3/4 cup skim milk

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 egg

Combine first 6 ingredients in a bowl, and make a well in the center of mixture. Combine zucchini, milk, oil, and egg: stir well. Add to flour mixture, stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened. Divide batter evenly among 12 muffin cups coated with cooking spray. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes or until golden. Remove from pans immediately, and let cool on a wire rack.

Calories 147; Protein 3.1g; Fat 4.3g; Carb 24.3g; Fiber 0.6g; Chol 18 mg; Iron; 1.1 mg; Sodium 62mg; Calc 69 mg

*The cooks changes...

I had enough zucchini to triple this recipe. I used half wheat and half white flour, 1 lemon, not sure what that measures out to, 1 container of fat free plain yogurt in place of the oil, and 6 egg whites in place of 3 eggs.

I thought they were ok, needed more spice and more lemon rind. Ryan's initial response was "these are good!" Then he noticed the little green flecks, causing him to barely finish the muffin.

Here's where I need your help. This is an easy lowfat recipe I'd like to use again, but I need suggestions on how to modify it more. Would you add cinnamon? Vanilla? Raisins? Don't suggest nuts...I think they ruin a baked good! :)

If you make them, post pictures on your blog and any changes you made to the recipe. Then let me know!

Wordless Wednesday

3 Months

Dear Eli,

You're three months old! How can that be? You've left the baby blob stage and no longer look like a newborn. Your cheeks have filled out and that double chin is coming along nicely. Just a couple days into this month you moved out of the fussy evening stage. We were so thrilled the first night you didn't fuss and thrilled that you stopped that so much earlier than we expected. Right about that time you started sleeping through the night. It didn't happen every night, but frequently. I'm in heaven and can't believe the amount of sleep I'm getting with such a young baby in the house!

Like your siblings, you love bath time. You'll sit and splash as long as we let you and hate getting out and getting dressed. Your really tolerant of water on your face and laugh when we try to clean under your chin.

We get tons of smiles from you now. You're especially happy in the morning and love it when we talk to you. Ryan holds you, singing and moving your arms around. You think this is pretty funn and generally reward him with smiles and even giggles. Makenna kisses all over you constantly. Her kisses don't bring giggles, but by the end of this month you started smiling at her. The two of them fight over who gets to hold you, they love you so much!

This month included a couple of exciting things. The first was a short trip to Atlanta and Chattanooga. You traveled really well, the car trips were a breeze. You also did well during the days...sleeping in your carseat or the sleepy wrap and nursing on the go! I was pretty impressed with us as you nursed in the sling while we walked through the Chattanooga aquarium. You went swimming for the first time while in Chattanooga. The water was on the chilly side so we weren't in the pool for long, but you really enjoyed in when I rubbed some of the warm water from the hot tub on your legs. (Thanks to Nana and Papa for your cute swim trunks!)

The other excitement this month was a tornado that hit the town just south of us. We were at a friends house for a playdate and realized that the weather was pretty bad. There were 3 adults and 10 kids, the oldest being 8 and the youngest being you. We spent about an hour piled into a bathroom, most of the kids in the bathtub with mommies and their babies on the floor. You were pretty nonplussed and slept through most of it. The tornado came within a few blocks of us and was classified as an F4. I've had bad dreams since, so I'm glad you don't remember it.

Here's an obligatory shot of you wearing a Johhn Cash Onesie. After all, Music City is your birthplace!

We love you Eli and are looking forward to what the month ahead brings!

Love,

Mommy

Hair Thursday

Three years ago my hair hit my waist when straight, since then I've been slowly chopping it off. I guess it really is true, the more kids you have the shorter your hair gets. I was ready for a change, something fun, edgy, sassy. I was nervous when I left the salon, he diffused it so I had an afro. Now that I've fixed it myself, I'm pretty happy with it.

Hubby is slowly getting on board. His initial response was "woah"...that's it. In his defense, when I left for the appointment I said I was just getting a trim. Surprise!

Could be Wordless Wednesday

Yep, it is what you think it is. The wee one was crying so I left Sassafrass in the tub while I went to get him. When I came back, this is what I saw. I guess I can check off another parental right of passage.

27 Months

Dear Makenna,

You're 2.25 years old and you are full of independance, love, sass and words! Oh my gosh the words! Your vocabulary has exploded over the last couple weeks. It seems that every day you have new words and I love how you say some of them. I need to get it on video because you are so cute. It appears that you and Ryan will both have a southern twang, fitting since we live in Tennessee. You just started saying Thank you...for the longest time in it's place you said "elk" a shortened version of welcome. You call a phone a hello, I love this. Instead of Eli, you call your brother Weewi. It appears to have stuck because now the whole family calls him that. Shower and cereal sound exactly the same, it takes some work to figure out which one you want sometimes. You've begun stringing a couple words together to make short sentances and look so proud when we know exactly what it is you're asking. You will repeat the same thing over and over again until we respond or give you what you want. I hear "Mommy, bye bye?" at least a hundred times each day. We start each day by talking about where each member of the family is. You say "daddy work?" and wait for me to respond. Then you move onto "Bubba school?" and "weewi sleep?". You think it's hilarious when I ask where you and I are. You sing all the time. Current favorites are the ABC's and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.

You'd started potty training, but have fallen out of that since our recent travels. We need to get out your potty books again and start reading them numerous times each day. I think that's what initially kicked off your interest.

You LOVE your babies. You have a bunch and seem to love all of them indiscriminately. Numerous times each day you can be found changing a diaper, strolling one around in a stroller, shushing and rocking, wrapping one in a blanket, and you always have a diaper bag in tow...you are a perfect little mommy already! You'd like to use these skills with Eli, but I annoy you by only letting you hold him with constant supervision. You love him so much that you get a little over zealous with your hugs and kisses.

You continue to be a night owl and have begun to fight naps most days. I still get you to take one 3-4 days a week, but you want to go to bed a lot later those days. If I let you, you'll sleep until 9 most mornings and if you haven't had a nap the previous day you'll sleep even longer if I let you.

You are your mommy's daughter and along with babies, your favorite toys are cell phones, keys, books, purses and shoes. We're going to have a lot of fun shopping when you get older little girl.

Sadly, you've started screaming NO when we've made a request you don't like and you and Ryan have begun picking on each other more. You also pick and choose when you want to listen. Consequently, you and your Time Out corner have begun spending a lot more time together.

We've had some challenging times recently, as you've adjusted to having another family member and lots of visitors, but you are still such a joy. Not a day goes by that you don't make me smile and laugh and want to cover you in kisses.

I love you sweet girl!
Mommy