Saturday, July 31, 2010

hide and seek with daddy



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making my own baby food

Julianna is now eating solids one time per day, in the evening. She had carrots for 4 days and last night we started avocado. I thought she loved carrots but goodness this girl devoured some avocado!

The carrots were from Gerber but I prepared the avocado for Julianna. I decided to make my own baby food with the assistance of http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/. They have all of the recipes and information to make your own food.

It's so much cheaper to make your own food! I made 16 oz. of green beans and it costs me $1.50. Right now she only eats about 1 oz. of food at a time so that means each feeding costs about 9 cents! I bought the Steam Fresh green beans because they cook fast and they are nothing but green beans--no added salt or flavoring.

The other reason I'm making my own is because I love the fact that Julianna is eating fresh veggies. I can make my own organic baby food for her at a great price. I also think making fresh food for her will encourage Josh and I to eat more fresh veggies ourselves. We definitely don't get enough of them. Here is Julianna enjoying her freshly prepared avocado:

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Wednesday, July 28, 2010

i'm pregnant! (well, one year ago)

I got my positive pregnancy test one year ago today. I took 2 of those cheap dollar store tests in the morning and saw a faint second pink line on both. I wasn't convinced so I went to buy the expensive digital tests to be sure. First one said yes and the one above is the one I took for Josh when he got home that evening. We were so excited! We told everyone right away. We just couldn't wait. I was only 4 weeks pregnant when I found out.

I started my blog when I was 16 weeks pregnant, but this is the entry where I talk about getting my positive test: http://mostlynice.blogspot.com/2009/11/finding-out-that-i-was-expecting.html

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faux fried chicken

I'm trying to be more creative in the kitchen. Cooking at home is so much cheaper than going out to eat but I've never really made much more than grilled chicken or spaghetti up until the past few weeks.

I had a goal today to make a meal using on what I had in my kitchen. Partially because I didn't feel like going anywhere and it was a cheap option because I already had the stuff!

I search the freezer and found chicken legs and I immediately knew I wanted to make some friend chicken! But I am watching what I eat to get rid of my baby fat so friend chicken wasn't the best choice for me to eat. So I did some research online to find healthier ways of getting the same satisfaction but with less calories. I saw a few recipes that involved using pancake mix and corn flakes. Checked the cabinets and I didn't have either one. So I got creative!

Here's my variation of "faux friend chicken":

This is what you need:

2 c. Total cereal
Seasoned salt
Paprika
5 chicken legs
1/2 c. butter
Big plastic baggie
Rolling pin
Pie tin
Baking pan


This is how you make it:
Put Total cereal (or corn flakes) into plastic bag and crush them with the rolling pin. Then dump them in the pie tin. Wash the drumsticks (or chicken breasts) and pat dry with paper towels. Put the butter in frying pan and melt over medium heat. With tongs, roll each drumstick in the butter then in the corn flakes until covered. Put corn flake coated drumsticks in baking pan (they should not be touching each other) and sprinkle with paprika and seasoned salt.
Bake in 400 degree oven for 45 minutes (they are done when you can pull the meat off with a fork).

And here's what it looks like:

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Tuesday, July 27, 2010

before i was a mom...

Before I was a Mom
Before I was a Mom: I cleaned my house each day. I never tripped over toys or forgot words to a lullaby. I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous. I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom: I never held down a screaming child so that doctors could do tests or give shots. I never looked into teary eyes and cried. I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin. I never sat up late hours at night to watch a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom: I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn't want to put them down. I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn't stop the hurt! I never knew that I could love someone so much. I never know I could love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom: I didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside of my body. I didn't know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby. I didn't know that bond between a mother and her child. I didn't know that something so small could make me feel so important.

Before I was a Mom: I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every ten minutes to make sure all was ok. I had never known the warmth, the joy, the love, the heartache, the wonderment or the satisfaction of being a Mom. I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much before I was a Mom.


- a fellow mom posted this on a message board and I had to share it. it's all so very true!


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Monday, July 26, 2010

first carrots

So, what do Bugs Bunny and Julianna have in common?? They both LOVE CARROTS! We began our solids adventure last Monday. We tried cereal Monday-Sunday with very little success. Apparently she hated the way it tasted. So I decided to give carrots a try this week. With the cereal she screamed but today she was reaching for the spoon and couldn't get enough! So I guess she has no issue with the spoon, she just doesn't care for rice cereal. I may try oatmeal instead of the rice cereal. Maybe she'll like it better. Enjoy a picture of Julianna and her carrots:

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Saturday, July 24, 2010

Happy 3rd Birthday to Ashton!

Happy 3rd Birthday to Ashton! I can't believe he's already 3 years old! We love you, Ashton! Love, Uncle Josh, Aunt Emily, and Cousin Julianna :)


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Friday, July 23, 2010

dance baby dance!

My, oh my how life has changed for Josh and I in the last 4 months! On Friday nights, we used to go out on dates, out to dinner, to the movies, and hang out with our other 20-something friends. Now on Friday nights, we dance with Julianna, watch her attempt to crawl, read silly books, and give bubble baths.

I LOVE our life now! Watch the video below and you will completely understand why!


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just because... a video



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you've got mail, julianna!

Mommy's don't have a lot time to work out. Most of my daily exercise includes toting around my 12 lb. baby and running up and down the stairs at my house. When she finally takes a nap (which is only in her swing at this point), I think great, I can work out now. Um, no. It wakes her up every single time! So when Josh got home from work yesterday, I told him that I needed to go for a walk. I actually wanted to sweat a little.

So I went out the front door and almost tripped over a fun discovery. There was a package for Julianna on the front porch! I love getting mail and Josh does too-- so of course, Julianna will probably enjoy it as well. It was the first package addressed to her that she's ever received. I know, I'm corny, I think every moment is something special. You have to treat every moment that way to appreciate what God has given us.

I waited to open it until I got back from my walk because Josh would have been jealous if he wasn't there. I know, we're dorks. I got to open it up an discovered this cute little outfit and card inside:


A BIG "thank you" to Megan and Josh for sending us this sweet little surprise!!


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Thursday, July 22, 2010

scratch, scratch.

Julianna scratched her little nails on this pillow for almost 20 minutes straight. She was totally amused and it was fun to watch. Now enjoy a minute of Julianna scratching a Boppy!



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and the family keeps growing!

Yesterday, Adam and Tonda found out that their expecting a baby boy! Their baby boy will make his debut in December (her due date is December 18). Tonda and baby are doing great and they plan to name him Christan Blake!

Julianna will have another cousin and Josh and I will have another nephew. The family keeps growing and growing and I love it! Bring on the babies! I'm so happy and excited for Adam and Tonda (and big sister, Alyssa). They are in my prayers for a healthy delivery! I can't wait to meet little man! :)


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Tuesday, July 20, 2010

a confession. i love "it"

I'm 24. I'm a wife. I'm a mother. I'm a teacher. And I also sleep with a stuffed animal. A bunny to be exact.

Here's the story behind the bunny... when I was two years old, my mom gave me a stuffed bunny as an Easter gift. I'm not exactly sure when but at some point, I became obsessed with this animal full of stuffing. I would dress "it" (I've never really decided if it's a boy or girl, so it's "it") up in doll clothing and even real baby clothes. I would push it around in a doll stroller. Bunny and me were inseperable.

At one point, I named the bunny Bailey but that faded somehow. But my love for this old stuffed animal has never faded away. Bunny even went to live with me at UNCG in my dorm room. I didn't care what anyone thought, it was (and still is) comforting and "it" helps me fall asleep.

I can recall many trips where I either left this bunny at home or at the hotel. "It's" been shipped back to me twice and I can recall my dad having to turn around and go back to get bunny.

I thought maybe when I got married, I would retire my good ole bunny but two years of marriage later and I'm still snuggling up to it every single night. Even after having my own child, I've still got bunny next to me every night. Josh doesn't seem to mind at all. He understands why I love it so much. But he does think it might get stolen. Stolen by Julianna that is. If there is anyone I would let have my "lovie" it would definitely be my precious daughter. Maybe one day Julianna will write in her own blog about mommy's bunny... if blogs even exist when she's able to type.

Oh and my bunny has been stolen once already. Maggie found comfort in bunny when she was just a puppy. My bunny is the only stuffed animal that she hasn't destroyed. She understands my attachment to it.

Gotta go, time to snuggle with bunny (and maybe Josh, too)!


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first cereal... not a success

Since the pediatrician gave us the go ahead on cereal, we had our first try last night. I'll tell this story in pictures.She was wondering what in the world is going on here and where is my bottle?!
Here comes the spoon...
Not much made it into her mouth. She wasn't impressed and definitely let me know. She was quite unhappy about the situation. The pediatrician said that it would probably take many tries before she actually "ate" any of the cereal. So we'll just keep trying!

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Monday, July 19, 2010

4 month well baby check

We just got back from Julianna's doctor appointment and my predictions weren't too far off. They were just a tad lower than what I had predicted.

Weight: 11.11 pounds


Height: 23.5 inches


She's in the 10th percentile for weight, 25th percentile for height, and also the 25th percentile for head circumference. Her peditrician was pleased with her development and wasn't concerned that she's still in peanut status. She said as long as a baby doubles his/her birth weight by 6 months then they are just fine. Julianna was 5 lbs. 8 oz. at birth so she's doubled her birth weight already.


Pediatrician also gain us the green light to start cereal and then progress to our stage 1 foods as we see that she's ready for them.

4 month predictions

Julianna and I will be heading to the peditrician soon for her 4-month well baby checkup and those dreaded shots. To me Julianna seems big (because she's so much bigger than she was when she was born) but when I see other babies her age, I remember that she's still just a peanut.

Here are my predictions for weight and height:

- I think she weighs between 12 and 14 pounds. Probably closer to 12.
- I think she's at least 24 inches long.

I'll update when we return to see if I was even close.

Saturday, July 17, 2010

Julianna is 4 months old today!

My sweet baby girl is 4 months old today! Time has seriously flown by. She's is growing and changing everyday.

Julianna is smiling, giggling, and reacting to noises. She hasn't had any solids at all, not even cereal yet. She eats 4-5 oz every 2-3 hours. She's a piggy! (I call her Princess Piggles) She goes for her 4 month shots on Monday so the pedi may recommend cereal since she's eating so much, so often. She can support her head pretty well but not for very long. She hasn't rolled over yet. Julianna tries but seems to always get stuck on her side--when that happens she's done with trying and fusses to be picked up. I think she's between 12 and 14 pounds now but we'll find out for sure on Monday.









Tuesday, July 13, 2010

a zombie proposal


There was a question posted on my favorite message board about how your husband proposed. I HAD to share my story with the ladies. When Josh proposed at Woods of Terror, New 2 was there and it was on the news that night. Then I was able to find it online the next morning and then discovered that the story had been shared with news channels all over the country. There was a video posted online but it was gone after a few months.