Make You Feel Good Chicken Stew

I created this recipe on my own by adding some ingredients I'd been meaning to use before they spoiled. It was amazing! I couldn't believe how good it turned out. Definitely good for a rainy day (like today) or when you're sick.

3 chicken breasts, cooked and chopped
2 cups water
14 oz can Swanson vegetable broth
2 large potatoes, peeled and chopped
1 large onion, chopped
1 can corn, drained
1 can diced tomatoes with green chilies (medium)
1 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp salt
1.5 Tbsp coarse black pepper

Add all ingredients together. I cooked it in the crock pot all day on low. Enjoy!!

Perfect Chicken Salad

Bruce named this "the perfect chicken salad" because he thought it was the best he'd ever had. I have to agree. It was amazing!! So I wrote everything down and decided to post it.

3 Tbsp light sour cream
3 Tbsp light mayo
1/3 cup relish
2 T minced onion
1 T honey
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp white pepper
3/4 cup pecan
3/4 cup coconut
3/4 cup grapes quartered
3 chicken breasts, cooked and chopped

Mix it all together and add the chicken at the end. Let cool in the refrigerator for at least an hour. My mom usually toasts the pecans and coconut, but I didn't do that this time. . .maybe that has something to do with how good it was. Hope y'all enjoy it as much as we did.

Things are a-changing

 

Oh-em-gee...I can't believe how long it's been since I've blogged. Over two months!! My little man will be a year and a half in 5 days!! We will be moving cross country in one week. So much has happened this summer I'm not even sure I could do it all justice. Long story short....Bruce returned from Afghanistan (PTL!), we took a romantic trip sans-baby to Las Vegas, Bruce got promoted to Captain (hello pay raise!), Bruce's family came out to visit, we took a beach trip to Destin Florida with my family, found a house in Virginia (finally), started and almost finished a couple of DIY projects that we are super proud of, and had our first yard sale (success!) It has been a super busy, super fun and extremely fast summer. I cannot believe it's already August!! No wonder I haven't had time to blog.

Happy Mother's Day and 15 months

Jenny's wedding - July 2009

Today is Mother's Day and my little man's 15 month birthday. So Happy Mother's Day to ME!  And to my momma and my mother in law - you two are wonderful examples of a mother's love and I am grateful for the guidance you provide me. Happy Mother's Day to my wonderful sister, step sister, sister in law, friends, family and everybody else out there who is a momma. I am so blessed and very thankful for Trey. He is the joy of my life and I love him dearly. I love being his stay at home mommy and I can't imagine life without him. MUAH!

My little man cub is getting so big! I cannot believe it sometimes. He is a totally different baby since Bruce left. Bruce will be so surprised at how much he's changed. He's taller! Trey can now climb on top of the coffee table and stand up! I have to constantly keep my eye on him. He's always into something. And it seems he always wants to do something I've told him previously not to do. I think he's a bit of a rule breaker. Or maybe that's just the toddler in him and things are only bound to get worse. HAHA! Either way it wears me out.

Here are some of the quirks and twirks that makes my little Trey the precious toddler that he is at 15 months.

He has found, thanks to the laughter and encouragement of mommy and others, that sticking his finger up his nose is funny. He is turning into a comedian. He does it all for show. It seems that he loves to make people laugh - just like his mommy. I try not to laugh but he's so funny when he does it that I can hardly help it.

He has this mischievous look he gets on his face when he is about to do something he knows he's not supposed to be doing. It's like he's saying "Look at me, I'm gonna do it." or "Are you going to stop me?" Makes me laugh, I mean I am really stern with him when he does this ;)

He loves to throw things. It started out with me teaching him how to throw a ball. Which he can do very well. But it has turned into him wanting to throw everything. It's hard to teach a child that while it's ok to throw balls, we can't throw everything. And how do you teach them you cannot throw a golf ball AT mommy? scary moment.

His current vocabulary is slightly increasing. He can now say no, hot, and bath. And I'm pretty certain he knows exactly what they all mean. He usually says no when referring to whether he wants something. He'll shake his head and say "nah." I will tell him it's bath time and he goes to his bathroom and starts turning the water on, saying "BA!" The other day I opened the dishwasher and steam came out and he says "hot!" which sounds like "hop." He sticks his hand out and jerks it back saying "hop" over and over. Other than those 3, no new words to report. He still says mama, dada, and da ma (which is Daddy Mac.) He's not really a "parrot" yet. He doesn't repeat things back to us. They are usually said on his own.

He loves to stand on our bed and fall backwards on the mattress. Then he rolls over, stands up and does it again. He giggles and shrieks when I hit him with the pillow. This came from a recent pillow fight with Daddy Mac in Hawaii. It's a fun new game.

Our morning routine is one of my favorites. I sit him in his highchair, put his breakfast on his tray and we watch his "show" Baby Einstein until he finishes. He loves Baby Einstein - he will not watch anything else. I've tried. And he still only likes Baby MacDonald and Baby DaVinci. I'm really getting tired of those two.

He eats so well in the mornings. His breakfast usually consists of orange juice, yogurt, a nutri-grain bar, banana, and cheese toast. Banana is the only fruit I can get him to eat - and he loves to hold the whole big ole thing and eat it like a grown up. He cries if I cut it up. I'm bad about giving him veggies b/c I don't really eat that many veggies. He will  eat peas and carrots. I need to try something new. Some of his favorite foods are pizza, any type of pasta, chicken, burgers, hotdogs, cheese, any sort of bread. Some of his favorite snacks are goldfish, puffs, crackers, nilla wafers, fig newtons, fruit gummies, and yogurt melts. He still won't really drink milk.

Breakfast - eating a banana

I think he may have a nut allergy. This is no bueno. Not long ago, he had a smidge of peanut butter that was left on my cracker and later when I went to get him from his bed, his eye was swollen almost completely shut. And a couple of days ago I was feeding him ice cream from my sundae which had nuts in it and his eye got red and splotchy around it. Nobody in our family has a nut allergy, so I wonder if these instances are all an allergy or can be explained by something else. Because he has come in contact with nuts and nothing has happened. I really hope it's not an allergy, but I'm trying to be really careful what I feed him.

He has the most adorable and funny run. I've even had strangers comment on how cute he is when he runs. He runs so fast and his feet move so quickly, but they barely come up off the ground and his steps are small. It looks like a wind up toy or something. It's hard to explain, but trust me, it's precious.

He likes music and likes to dance. When asked if he can dance, he will spin in a circle. A-dor-able! 

He loves to put things together. He likes to put lids on and off of things, stick the jack to my earphones in and out of my ipod, stick a straw in and out of the hole in the lid. Tons of entertainment!

He is particularly busy in the kitchen. If I have the fridge open, he wants to move all the items in the door to the shelves in the main part. He wants to play with the magnets on the fridge. He likes to rummage through the cabinets and pull everything out. He is taller and can reach the nobs on the stove. We have a gas stove, so he can't actually turn the stove on, but he can move the knob around and turn it off. The dishwasher offers lots of entertainment. He wants to open and close it; take the dishes out; stand on it when it's open; spin the dial and turn it on; lock and unlock the latch; open and close the detergent slot.

He loves to play on playgrounds. He loves to climb the steps and slide down the slide. Climbing is his favorite thing to do right now. He loves to climb stairs. He can climb up all by himself, but tends to get to the top and wait for my help to get down. He holds out his little hand for me to grab on. Trying to go down stairs/steps by himself usually results in a fall. He's working on it.

He loves the pool and the water. We had such a great time at the pool in Kauai. He would just chill in his floatie and we'd swim around. I think he could have done that for hours. Sadly, kids under 5 aren't allowed in the big pool on base, so we won't be able to do that here. I want to get him some sort of kiddie pool to splash in for the back yard. We also have 2 fun splash pads on base that I have been DYING to take him to. This will be the perfect summer for that. It's not quite warm enough here yet, but soon!

I've taught him how to get down off the couch. He rolls over on his belly and slides off. He's not quite perfected it, and he doesn't use the technique every time, but he does most of the time.  He hasn't quite grasped the idea that when he is up on something high, he will fall off. He's always wanting to stand up on our bed and the couch. And playing on the trampoline or a tall playground is just asking for a broken appendage. He makes me nervous!

I think little man is going through a major growth spurt. Or maybe his running around all day is wearing him out. He sleeps A LOT! He is now sleeping 12-13 hours at night, and still takes 2 great naps - usually 2 hours long. It is insane!! Where was this when he was a baby? I was begging for sleep back then. Now I can actually get things done and even have some free time! to blog! and watch movies! and read! I'm LOVING this phase. But of course, when Bruce gets back in a couple of weeks the phase may end. I'm praying it sticks around for a while.

The boy is obsessed with his paci. He still likes to carry 2 around and swap them out. He now wants to go to sleep with 2 pacis. I think it's a comfort thing. The other day he put 2 in his mouth at the same time. Which is what his daddy used to do. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree.

He is getting more and more teeth. He now has 3 on top and 3 on bottom, with the 4th coming in on both. He has a molar on top and bottom on his left side.

He has been extremely lovey lately and very attached to me. He wants to be where I am and doing what I do. He wants me to hold him or lift him up to be a part of the action. It's gotta be hard to be so small!! He is constantly giving me hugs and holds on tight. He likes to give Maggie hugs and is starting to love on other things like his blankie and his stuffed animals. He even gave our friend's baby a hug yesterday. This usually consists of him leaning over and laying his head on them while patting.

He is becoming more tall and skinny. No more fat baby! Sad! He is hard to shop for. He wears 12 months in most shorts and they fit him perfectly. 12 month pants fit good in the waist but are too short, while 18 month pants are way too big all around. I've been buying mostly 18 month shirts b/c 12 months are too short.

He has now had 2 haircuts and he needs another.

He weighs 22 lbs and has stayed at that weight for a while.

World Traveler

Trey has been more places in his short little life span than many adults. It's kindof ridiculous. And he is such a good little travel companion. I couldn't ask for a better baby. Our recent trip to Kauai was wonderful! But the traveling part was less than ideal. On our trip out there, we were supposed to meet up with the in-laws in Denver, but of course our flight to Denver got canceled and there were none out that could get us there in time to catch our flight to Kauai. They decided to route us through San Fran, which honestly is a better and quicker route, but we had to wait 3 hours in our own Salt Lake City airport before that flight took off. This gave us plenty of time to get coffee, play in the germ-infested play area, make Trey really tired and momma totally worn out before we even took off. Thank the good LORD Trey fell asleep in my lap - a feat I wasn't sure but truly hoped was possible. When we got to San Fransisco we had an epic 4 hour layover, which gave us time to do just about anything we wanted. Probably could have made it to the Golden Date Bridge and back if I had thought about it. I honestly thought Trey would take a nap in his stroller, but he fought it to the death and did not give in. So I was SURE he would fall asleep as soon as we got on the plane. Thankful we made it through the epic layover, I got my happy butt on the plane, book in hand thinking I was about to get some free time. But alas, United had some sort of dumaflitchy broken and we sat on the plane for TWO!!! hours before we even took off. At this point I think Trey was slightly crazy from being so tired. He was all over me and wanted to sleep or run or jump or anything but sit in mommy's lap while we waited. He wouldn't sleep. There was too much going on. Plus, we didn't have that nice vibration and hum of the engine to knock him out. I asked the flight attendant why in the WORLD would they board us if something was broken. She didn't have an answer and walked away very quickly as she could probably tell I was losing it. I had run out of tricks. I was out of puffs, Goldfish, suckers and yogurt melts. All which were dumped onto the floor, my lap, and Trey's lap. Trey was sick of Baby Einstein - we had reached the point where he was slamming the dvd player shut. Alert! We received updates every 15 minutes telling us they can't fix it, not sure what's wrong...yada yada yada. We were even told we may not make it to Hawaii that day. All these thoughts run through my head like, omg, we're going to be in a hotel tonight and we're going to have to start this day all over again tomorrow. I can't do it! Send me back to Utah! I was seriously considering not going to Kauai. However, the good LORD was looking down on me and had pity on my poor pitiful self. I heard the sweetest words ever spoken by a pilot. "Flight attendants, prepare the cabin for departure!" Praise Jesus! About this time I got a text from Daddy Mac saying they'd landed in Lihue. On the plane we were supposed to be on. FML. Of course as soon as we were in the air, Trey was out. He was wiggly (my lap can't be that comfortable) but he slept for the majority of the 5 hour flight. I read occasionally and watched some of Tron Legacy without earphones - every time I leaned over to grab them Trey woke up. It was NOT worth it. That movie looked stupid anyways. We got into Lihue around 8 pm...this was 12am Utah time. The fam, who was I'm sure just as tired as we were - it was 2 am Katie and David's time - was there to meet us at the airport and even had a large container of Mojitos ready for me in the fridge at the resort. That would have to wait. We went to bed immediately. Sweet sleep.

Now, with all that being said...the rest of the trip was fabulous. I woke up the next morning, which was Easter Sunday, bright eyed at 5:30 am. Go figure. I was emailing Bruce, went out on the balcony and realized the sun wasn't even up and that I HAD to go watch the sun rise. I had no idea when it would happen other than it would be soon, so I threw on some clothes and ran down to the beach - or lack there of - more like a rock face cliff, but it was still a beautiful view and I watched as the wondrous beauty of our LORD revealed itself. It was breath taking.

We went ziplining (while Glenda watched Trey for the day) and that was so much fun! And gorgeous! We were basically in the tropics. At first it was a bit scary to make the plunge and jump, but in the end and on our 7th zip I was comfortable enough to go at it upside down. Thrilling! On Wednesday, everybody but me and Trey went island hopping to Oahu. It gave us a little time to ourselves and allowed Trey to better adjust to the time change. He was still SO tired and slept the majority of the day. I read my new book, Matched, and loved it. We also went to the pool where he pooped in his swimmie diaper/speedo - that was totally gross - and fed the koi in the resort's tier garden ponds. It was a good day.

The rest of the trip was mainly spent at the pool soaking up the sun and playing with Trey in the water. He LOVES the pool.

Katie, David and I went to Poipu beach where Trey saw the ocean for the first time.  He was a bit weirded out by the sand and seemed to want it OFF his hands. And we tried to eat a snack while sitting in the sand. That was fun. He was thrilled by the waves when we got in the water and shrieked when it splashed us. It was awesome to be there for this first-time experience of his.

We went out to eat at Duke's, our favorite restaurant, three times while we were there. My teriyaki steak, coconut shrimp, and BBQ sandwich were all amazing!!

The only thing missing from our vacation was Bruce. However, he was still in Afghanistan serving our country in a time of war. It was one of many sacrifices we have had to make over the past 4 months that he's been gone. We will surely be glad to have him home; he only has 2 more weeks over there. Hallelujah!

14 Months

This is about 10 days late, but oh well.

We finally made it back to Utah! Praise Jesus, I've never been so excited to see my house in my life! I grabbed Trey and ran around the house yelling "we're home!" over and over, showing Trey all the rooms in the house, asking him if he remembers that THIS is where we LIVE! He probably thought I'd lost my mind. Don't misunderstand me, we had a great time with our families in Alabama. I am so grateful for all the help in watching Trey and thoroughly enjoyed all the bonding time we had. But there's just something about being in your own home, cooking your own meals, having your own schedule. It's pretty wonderful. Even if it feels uber weird to be here without the hubby. I miss him and his sweet face. So....we are slowly getting settled and trying to get used to the time change. It's amazing how just 1 hour can mess you up. Trey actually went for his 1 year check up today. Hahaha...talk about late. He is in the 95th percentile on height. Go figure. I reckon he's going to be tall. Who knew? He weighs 22.1 lbs. He's growing way more up than out.

Trey loves:

Playing outside. When we were in Alabama, we usually took advantage of all the pretty weather we had and stayed outside most of the day. He loves it! He just wants to run around and get into everything. He played with the rocks, jumped in the mud, climbed up and down the hills - basically acted like a boy. It was so fun to watch.

Maggie. He loves to play with her and chase her around. He gets the biggest kick out of taking her toys and throwing them or running around with them. It's kind of like keep-away from the Schmaggles.

Playing with his food. When he's hungry, he will eat and eat and eat - and he's getting good at using a fork/spoon, too. But then he gets to a point where he will throw his food, swirl it around on his tray, smash it with his finger, feed it to Maggie. ANYthing but put it in his mouth. Obviously, this has become a source of frustration for me. We're working on it.

Bathtime. This is still a highlight of his day. He could stay in there forever. He has recently found splashing extremely funny. He'll squeal with delight while he does it.

Hugging. He gives the best hugs ever! And he hugs me all the time. Basically every time I pick him up, he'll put his arms around my neck and squeeze. I don't think this new development will ever get old.

Juice. Orange juice is still his favorite but we've been branching out lately to try different ones and he likes them all. Milk is probably on the bottom of his list of favorite drinks. He definitely likes it better when it's about room temperature, but it takes him a while to drink a whole cup. Whereas a cup of juice will be gone in just a few minutes.

Cheese. And Yogurt. Thank God! His aversion to milk had me worried at first, but he gets enough dairy from all the yogurt and cheese he eats. He comes by this honestly...we are a cheese eating family. I could live off of it. 

Climbing stairs/steps. This could be a source of entertainment for hours if I'd let it; however, this activity has to be well monitored and I would never get anything done. The child loves to climb.

Brushing his teeth. He knows exactly what I'm saying when I ask him if he wants to go brush his teeth. It's becoming part of our bedtime routine and he gets giddy when he sees me get it out of the drawer. He swirls it around in his mouth like he knows exactly what he's doing. He's seen me do it plenty of times and he wants to do everything I do. Such a big boy! He's got so many teeth coming in right now. I found a new one today (it's really hard to notice b/c he hates me looking in there) so that makes 3 coming in (two huge ones in back) - add that to the 4 he already has. They all seem to be coming in at once. Such a terrible phase, this teething. 

Throwing balls. His daddy will be so proud. And honestly, the kid seems to have a good arm on him. He can chuck 'em far!

Baby Einstein. Up until about 3 weeks ago, I didn't think Trey would ever sit still and watch tv at all. Not that it was a requirement or anything, but a few minutes of down time would be nice! Recently he has discovered Baby Einstein and loves it. His favorites are Baby DaVinci and Baby MacDonald. Actually he won't really watch any others. I've heard Old MacDonald so many times I sing it in my sleep. But I will take what I can get. This combined with a portable dvd player was an absolute life saver on the plane home. He was content for at least 30 min.

Pitching fits. I'm not trying to make my child sound like a hellion or anything, because he is just precious and adorable and sweet and all that gushy stuff, but he can pitch a mean fit. He'll lie down on the ground and roll around, kicking and crying that extremely fake cry. He's a fit pitching pro. Say that 5 times really fast.

Trey hates:

Getting in his car seat. I swear he pitches a fit every time these days. Hopefully it's a phase. He is usually fine once he gets settled, but the first few minutes are a BATTLE FIELD!

Laying down to get his diaper changed. This is another battle field for us. The second I lay him down, he is squirming to get down and comes close to rolling off the changing table.

The conclusion to the previous 2 hates are that my child hates to sit still. Maybe that's why he sleeps 12 hours and night and still takes 2 two hour naps. He wears himself (and mommy) out! He is non-stop. Can you imagine this on a plane? In confined areas? It's not pretty.

Quirks:

He does this thing where he sticks his neck out really far and then brings it back down, like an exaggerated nod. Sometimes he will simultaneously open and close his mouth. That's the best way I can describe it, but it is so cute and so funny to me. It's the little quirks like this that make me smile and love him to pieces.

Trey has started doing this face that really reminds me of Josh when he was a baby. He'll pucker up his lips to the point where they're touching his nose. Josh used to sniff very dramatically and his lips would come out and touch the tip of his nose. Both are very cute and endearing to me.

Savannah

Last weekend I left Trey with Gigi and Daddy Mac to kick up my heels and have a little fun. It was the longest I had been away from the little man thus far. I had him completely weaned a couple of weeks before and was ready to test the waters of life without a parasite. LOL! The Italy Girls got together in Savannah for an extremely fun getaway that was much needed by all of us. With all that's going on in our lives, it was nice to be able to relax and have fun. Ashley G and I drove together from Huntsville to meet Ashley Ward at Katie's house in Atlanta. We all spent the night (attempted 3 girls in a queen sized bed) and then rode together to Savannah the next morning. After checking in to our hotel we walked to a little Mexican place I saw on the way in called Cilantro's. We talked and laughed over a pitcher of margaritas and ended up ordering another due to all the fun we were having. I haven't laughed that hard in a long time. It was therapeutic.

After 2 pitchers and a great buzz later, we, or should I say they, decided we should go browse through antique shops. This just isn't my thing I guess because I was bored...however, just about anything can be fun when you're with your best friends and extremely tipsy so of course we had a wonderful time. Trying on funny glasses from 1950something. Calling Jenny to ask some very important Italy questions to which she nor us had the answers. Later that evening we had dinner at Crystal Beer Parlor where we were freezing to the bone and were waited on by a very interesting and questionable lady. However, the food was delicious (I had jalapeno cilantro hot wings) and the vibe was fantastic. Chalk this up to #2 in the books of fabulous finds by Mrs. MacNeill. The next day we ventured out in the cold to wander the squares set up around the city and eat lunch. We made our way toward Mrs. Wilkes Boarding house to unexpectedly find a long line winding its way around the building. We found out that this place was 1. amazing 2. about a 90 minute wait. We started talking to people in line and decided to stick it out. Two hours later we made it in and ate some of the best fried chicken of my LIFE! The four of us sat at a table with a family of four where there was fried chicken, cornbread, about 20 different sides and a bunch of sweet tea. Pretty much like Thanksgiving on crack. It was unreal. Later that night we did a mini pub crawl, got some unprecedented smokes and met up with Netherland and Jessica. Finally! Our whole group was all together and it was time to get down with our bad selves. We ate at Molly MacPhereson's Scottish Pub for dinner - fab find #4 - where we had more tasty food and beer. There was a debate going on comparing these 2 hot celebrities. My guy is Cam Gigandet (Black and white pic), Ashley G's guy is Wentworth Miller (color pic). I'm not saying Wentworth isn't hot, but that smile on Cam is to die for. I'll let you decide.

After dinner we went to the Rooftop Bar and danced the night away. Me and Ashley G had our dancing shoes ON! The next morning I felt like I had ran a marathon my body hurt so bad. After 6 girls got ready in one room, we walked around town and basically basked in the much-longed-for sunshine. We took a carriage tour, shopped at the market, and drove to the lovely Forsythe Park. For dinner we ended our vacation with a bang and ate at The Olde Pink House - check that one off Netherland's bucket list. We left the next morning knowing we would be back together soon. Hopefully with all 8 of us there. We missed Jenny and Kristen. I know it sounds cheesy, but these girls are the best friends you could ever ask for. We can be ourselves and talk about anything. It's an amazing thing. I love you girls.

Sunny Days

 This Sunday we were over at Kimberly's house and it was a beautiful day. We (or I) drew a sidewalk drawing out of chalk. Meanwhile Trey just put the chalk in his mouth and ran around like he'd never been outside before. He LOVES being outside. Basically begs to go out.

That little step right there was his source of fun for over an hour. He totally fell face first and ate grass a few times but he kept trucking away as if he had to conquer it. Up and down and up and down.

 He loves playing with Alissa and Lucas. They are so cool.

 Lucas is a nut. He and Alissa had so much fun with the water guns.

 Into everything. My life revolves around keeping him out of things and places he doesn't belong.

 Playing with the chalk.

Such a cutie pie. He needs a haircut so badly. I plan to take him tomorrow. 

 I love that his pants are undone. No idea how this really happened, but it makes me laugh.

 Me and My Buddy! I love him so much. Such a sweet little guy. He loves giving kisses.

This was a fun day.

13 months

Preface: This will sound like I am bragging about my child (which in all honesty I am so proud of him so I probably am) but I really just want to have something to remember what he is up to at 13 months.

He is such a climber and a daredevil (see picture.) He is totally fearless and wants to climb on everything.We went to the park yesterday and he made it all the way up the jungle gym by himself and slid down the slide. I have got to learn not to worry about him so much. Will that ever happen? Ha!

When asked, Trey can point to his nose as well as others. When I ask where his tongue is (and stick mine out) he will stick his out. When I ask for a hug, he will hug me so tight around the neck. When I ask for a kiss, he will stick out his tongue and lean in for a big wet one. 

He got an Elmo mail box toy that has 5 differently shaped blocks that he can put in the correct hole as well as letters he can put in the drop box in the front. When I ask where Elmo is, he will point to him.

He loves to brush his hair with his brush. We just got a new toothbrush to brush his two front teeth and gums.  Soon he will have two new front teeth on the top – I can finally see them peeking through.

Moving up to size 4 diapers was the best idea ever. I had no idea how much we needed to move up to the next size until I finally did it. 18 month clothes are a bit big, but 12 months are too small. He’s somewhere in the middle.

He has a new weird phobia of shoes. He pitches a fit when I put any type of shoe on him. However, he loves to try and put them on when no one is looking. 

He loves straws and wants to grab any straw in sight. Then once he gets it, he wants to try and put it in the hole in the cup. It’s all a game to him.

His hair is starting to get really long and I don’t want to cut it. I want him to have Beiber hair. Eventually I will cave, but for now I adore it. 

When he gets the chance, he loves to run around naked. It reminds me of Rugrats when they discover being “nakey.”

He did so well when we drove the 9 hours to Virginia. He took two naps and watched some Baby Einstein. I was extremely impressed.  He is starting to act a bit more interested in dvds….especially when he’s strapped in a car seat and doesn’t have much of a choice :) However, going to Ruby Tuesday’s when we got there may have been a bit too much to ask of him. He was so rambunctious; he wanted to run around and personally I didn’t blame him. Eating out is not worth the struggle I go through.

We got to video chat with Bruce this week and Trey was finally awake for it. It was priceless. They really miss each other. In other news, Bruce has a flat top. No comment.

We’re down to one night feeding and he will probably be weaned this week. 

We’ve tried whole milk, skim milk, 1% milk, milk with strawberry, and formula. All of which he wanted nothing to do with. I’m almost to the point where I’m going to give up on it. 

I think when he says “ung” it means dog. 

He loves to play with Maggie. He likes to play keep away from her with her toys. I don’t think she likes the game as much as he does. But it sure is funny to watch. 

He likes to push the buggy/stroller instead of ride in it. 

He can give an awesome high five and is working on “knucks.” Instead of putting all of his fingers in a fist, he sticks his pointer finger out and bumps knuckles. 

While his vocabulary seems to be increasing, not much of it makes sense. I guess his baby talk is increasing. More sounds. More fun!

He will randomly cover his eyes to play peek-a-boo!

He *hates* when people wear glasses, goggles, hats, helmets or anything of the like.

Southern Family

The older I get, the more I realize how fortunate I am to have been raised in the South. The values and traditions that I grew up on are still such a big part of me today. From going to church on Sundays to eating a home cooked meal together as a family around the table to having integrity and morals - these are things I plan to pass on to my children. Being in the Air Force may prevent Bruce and I from raising our children in the South, but he is living proof that those values can be instilled no matter where you live. I am so thankful to have a husband who treasures those same beliefs and will help me raise our children in a Godly household. I know he will be firm but loving when it comes to discipline - he is such a wonderful husband and father and I am so blessed to have him as the head of our family.

Moving to Virginia

For those of you who don't know, we're moving to Virginia in July. Bruce got a job with the NRO in Chantilly, which is kindof a big deal. He definitely had to be a super star to get this assignment. I am so proud of him for all his hard work at Hill. We will miss Utah but are excited for the new chapter in our lives. Our initial plans were to live close to the city. How many chances with the Air Force do you get to live in or near such an amazing city with so much to offer?! With dreams of going to museums and monuments on a weekly basis, we were looking into Alexandria or Arlington, which are not in the dead center of D.C., but pretty close. We would be close enough to use the metro, but traffic is terrible and Bruce would have a hefty commute to and from Chantilly. We have recently reconsidered this commute and have decided it will be too difficult on us. We would rarely get to see each other during the week and neither of us want that. We are used to living on base which is a 5 min drive to work. We get to see each other during lunch breaks and he gets home in the early afternoon. We LOVE it! Therefore, we are looking at places closer to his work, like Centreville, Reston and a few others. I think in the end we will be grateful of our decision. And we will only be a short drive away from D.C. I can't wait!

I love you little I love you big I love you like a fat little pig!

Some quirks and tidbits that I want to remember about Trey...

He loves music. If he hears a tune, he will stop what he's doing and either do a kind of dance that's more like bouncing while squatting or he'll bob his head. It's great.

He is easily distracted while eating. He wants to do anything but eat when he's in a high chair. Eating in a restaurant is particularly difficult. He is twisting in his seat and looking around. Basically he hates to sit still. Sometimes when we're at home, I opt for the "eat on the run" method - where I just let him play and feed him bites when he comes up to me. It's actually pretty successful. As Aunt Kimberly says - Who said they HAVE to sit in a high chair to eat? She's the innovator of the method.

He's started this new thing where you ask "Where's momma?" and he'll point his chubby little finger at me and poke on my chest. Or "Where's Trey?" and he'll point to himself. I asked where daddy was and he pointed to a pillow we have with Bruce's picture on it. So far he knows who Gigi, MawMaw and Pa John are. He's getting so smart.

The other day we were shopping in Carter's with Gigi in Charleston and we were trying some flip flops on him. You would have thought we cut his feet off. He started crying and pitching a fit. At first we thought it was the part that went between his toes that wigged him out, but he did the same thing with the sandals too. It was so funny. I tried another pair of sandals on him at Target yesterday and he did the same thing. I have no idea why he doesn't like sandals.

His favorite word is mama. He says mama for everything. There is some jabbering mixed in there, but mama is his favorite.

He is almost completely weaned at this point. I nurse him only at night now - occasionally maybe once during the day. It has been a gradual and saddening process, but I reckon it's time. Nursing has been such an amazing experience for me. I have solely been responsible for keeping this child alive for a whole year. What an honor. I feel so blessed to have been able to nurse him so well for so long. I'm honestly going to miss it. My mother says I'll have another one to feed soon enough...I guess she's right. I HOPE she's right. I pray I'm able to nurse any other children we may have.

We still have nights where he wakes up some. (Augh!)I can't remember the last time I was able to sleep through a whole night. But by golly he GOES to sleep like a champion! He never puts up a fuss. He'll often fall asleep while I'm rocking him, but I can lay him in the bed fully awake and he'll go to sleep on his own. This applies for nap time as well. Sometimes it takes him a while to fall asleep - I'll hear him in there talking until he finally gives it up. But he never cries. I am so grateful for this!! His naps are still around 2 hours long. And if he sleeps the normal amount of time that he's used to, he wakes up in a great mood. He'll sit in there for a while just talking and rolling around and gradually waking himself up - but if he is in there too long he'll start yelling MAMA!! As if to say "Get your butt in here! I'm awake and I know you're out there!" It makes me laugh.

When we went to Charleston to see Katie and David Maggie stayed with Kristie and Sean. When we got back into Birmingham we met up with Kristie to pick up Maggie. Trey acted like he was seeing a long lost friend. He reached his arms out and gave her the biggest hug. Twice. Since then he has been trying to give her hugs and once even tried to give her a kiss. He's such a love bug. Just like his daddy.

While we were in Charleston I went shopping with Katie two days in a row and left Trey at home with either Glenda or David. It was fun and liberating. I love being with him so much but am grateful for the times I get to myself. In April I am planning to go to Savanna, GA with the Italy Girls for the weekend. It will be my first experience away from him overnight. Pray for us both :)

He's started climbing. And it's dangerous. He started out climbing up Katie's huge staircase - which he thought was the most fun ever and now he's trying to climb up and down little steps, but those little steps can make for big falls. He's had so many knots and bruises on his noggin. We had our first "bloody" accident the other day. He fell on a cup. Of all things. His face hit the edge of the cup (which was a bit jagged) and cut him right under his nose. I tried to stay calm but I was secretly freaking out. I'm not ready for this....lol!

Little dude is addicted to Orange Juice. It's all he wants. I try to give him whole milk but he wants nothing to do with it. He makes a face every time! He will somewhat drink water. But when I give him Orange Juice, he'll drink the whole cup no problem. He gets it from me. I love Orange Juice.

He eats alot of table food now. Almost to the point where I am going to quit buying baby food. I may keep a few of the "fruit and oatmeal" or just plain fruit around for breakfast, but I'm done with the dinners like "chicken and rice." Some of his favorite foods are chicken, spaghetti, macaroni and cheese, field peas, steak or hamburger (chewed up - he still only has his two bottom front teeth.) He's becoming such a big boy!

He loves to play with his paci. He loves to have one in his mouth and carry another one in his hand - switching them out periodically. He loves to put his paci in other people's mouths. He loves to put his paci in something bigger like a cup or bowl and shake it around. While eating, he loves to put a bite of food in his mouth and then immediately put his paci in while chewing. Then take it out for the next bite. I think its all a game for him. His paci is definitely his favorite toy.

He's officially in size 4 diapers. They are much better! He's also moving into 18 mo clothes. He's definitely an average sized baby. Nothing crazy. I'm interested to see how tall he'll be.

There is a point in a baby's life when you start realizing they are getting smart enough to use some of the knowledge they have acquired in their short lifespan. And it's amazing. It only gets better from here. I am one proud mama. He is one cool dude.

Birthday Boy

I received the best birthday present on Trey's birthday...he gave me a hug! His first real hug! He was standing in my lap and he just wrapped his little arms around my neck and squeezed. I said thank you for the hug and he squealed and did it again...and again! It was priceless. Something I will never forget. He is such a precious baby and an enormous blessing in our lives. What a year it has been! We have been through so much as a family already. We've moved into a new house, Bruce has deployed and we've temporarily relocated. Things change so quickly. I feel like it was only a moment ago that we were driving to the hospital in the middle of the night, with me crying and praying this was the real deal, because I couldn't imagine going through this kind of pain again. Bypass a year and here we are - we have a toddler! He's walking everywhere and into everything. He can literally run! That little booger is fast. He loves to play with Maggie. He sneaks her food and shares his snacks. They get along so well. He can entertain himself forever with only a hanger, or a bag of buns. He always seems to be smiling and in a good mood. I have been asked on several occasions if he ever cries or gets fussy. And honestly he is only fussy when he's tired or sick. He's such a good baby! I'd like to be able to take credit for it - to be able to say it's due to my splendid parenting, but honestly it's just the way the Lord made him. It's the way he is. And I am so grateful.

We had his party on Saturday Feb 5 at my mom's house. It was mainly just close family. We had a great time and everything turned out perfectly. Trey wasn't in the least bit interested in opening his presents and didn't want to have anything to do with his cake. He poked at it with his finger and then got upset because he was dirty. He looked so handsome in his birthday tshirt and flannel shirt with blue jeans. Such a handsome little guy. Takes after his daddy. Bruce wasn't able to be there, but we were able to video chat with him on Sunday morning. It was great to see him. He seems to be doing well in Afghanistan. He feels like he has a purpose, which is essential. I think he would excel in just about anything - he never ceases to amaze me with his ambition and drive. He wants to do well at whatever he does, no matter how small. I love him for that.

Some Special Tidbits about our 1 year old...

• He seems to have found his voice. He loves to squeal. I'll squeal at him and he'll squeal back. It's our new game and he loves it.
• His new favorite - Orange Juice. Thanks to his Aunt Kimberly, he drinks more orange juice than breast milk. He carries his sippy cup around and can finish off a whole cup of it.
• He is still nursing and is still mainly eating baby food. I give him table food and he likes most of it, but it's usually not enough. I'm trying to feed him more and more of what we eat. Baby food is easy and its convenient, but it's getting expensive.
• He still only has his two bottom front teeth. He's a little behind in the tooth department.
  
• He loves to play with his older cousins, Alissa and Lucas. He follows them everywhere and wants to do everything they're doing. I'm so happy they all get to spend so much time together while we're here in Alabama.
  
• He LOVES Daddy Mac and I think he can say his name. He says dada ba. It's adorable. When he sees Daddy Mac he'll run to him and loves to hang out with him. I feel like he looks more like Daddy Mac than Bruce.
  
• He's starting to be a bit more interested in books. I can read him one book and then he's wiggling to get down. But I will occasionally see him pick up a book on his own and flip through the pages and jabber about what he sees.
  
• He's still not interested in the tv or movies. He's too busy to sit still for anything like that. However, due to the recent discovery of how much he hates to ride in the car for long periods of time, I got him a portable dvd player for his birthday. Yesterday, on our first attempt to watch it, he fell asleep within 10 minutes. But he was quiet so it served its purpose. We will see how it goes.
  
• He's still sleeping around 12 hours at night, and usually takes two 2 hour naps. It's wonderful.
  
• He is now sitting facing the front in the car. Maybe this is why he's so fussy...hmm. Interesting.
• He stood on the scale this morning on his own...he is 21.6 lbs.
  
• He wears mostly 12 months clothes but is quickly outgrowing them as well as his size 3 diapers.