Tuesday, May 31, 2011

What We've Been Up To

*Bryan was lucky enough to be off for Memorial Day, so he grilled some burgers for dinner. It was the best burger I have ever eaten!! It was perfectly seasoned and cooked, then topped with blue cheese, caramelized onions, sauteed mushrooms, bacon, and homemade barbecue sauce. Sarah just wanted bacon and colby-jack cheese on hers, (she thought about trying the blue cheese, but then smelled it and immediately changed her mind!), and she said it was so good, it could be served in a restaurant for $100!! Jackson didn't have any of the cheeseburgers, but he did enjoy some plain pasta from the pasta salad and a big scoop of banana pudding!

*Jackson has really come around to drinking milk over the last several days. It's still not his favorite you can tell, but he'll drink the majority of his cup now. After 11 months, I nursed him for the last time on Saturday night. I was worried how he would react, but he's been doing great without it! And he's slept through the night for the past 5 nights! That's the first stretch of days in a row I've slept through the night since the last trimester of my pregnancy with him. It's weird and wonderful all at the same time!! : )

*Sarah competed in a Spelling Bee this morning at school with about 30 other second grade students. For a little over a week now, we've practiced from a list of 299 words that was sent home. The classes had mock spelling bees last week, and the top 5 students from each class went on to the real one. After 3 rounds, the teachers decided to switch to harder words that the kids had not prepared for--because they were not told to. After attempting to spell words such as "sprinkled" and "enormous," the students started dropping like flies. It was so sad, and in my opinion, unfair. When the words were called, the few parents who were there would just look at each other in disbelief, and when the kids spelled the new words incorrectly, most of them sat down crying. Sarah got knocked out after an hour and 20 minutes on the 2nd round of the hard words--she spelled "curious" without the "u." She was so disappointed. After I gave her lots of hugs and talked to her, she was better. We are SO proud of her!! While at the spelling bee, Jackson behaved really well! He even participated and clapped--sometimes after a student was eliminated after working so hard and sometimes in the middle of a word being spelled!

*The other night after tucking both kids in bed, Bryan and I played on the XBOX and had so much fun! We began with bowling. About half way through the game, I was winning by 29 points. Then, by the end, I lost by double that. I am still convinced he cheated somehow! Next, we moved on to various track and field events. I actually set the world record in one event...until it was Bryan's turn to go again! And although he threw a javelin so far out of range that it hit one of the bystanders, he still ended up winning the whole thing. I don't understand why he was not eliminated on the spot after severely injuring someone, but whatever!!

Saturday, May 28, 2011

A Family Portrait

A few months ago, Sarah made her first drawing of all four of us. (I don't know why I'm just now posting it though!) We love it!
I think Jackson's little hair is too cute!

Tickle Time!

Sarah and Jackson LOVE playing together! And one of Sarah's favorite things to do to her little brother is...
tickle him!! The poor boy never stands a chance!! "I give up, Sissy!" The two of them laughing is music to our ears!

The Chrysler Building

In GT, Sarah made a replica of the Chrysler Building out of various cardboard boxes that she painted. She also wrote a report on it!
We think she did a great job!!

Friday, May 27, 2011

A Typical Day

This is what it looks like when Daddy's home...
and he loves it!

11 Months Old!

Jackson is 11 months old today! He's getting so big!
11 month old cutie! He loves reading, and this tiger book is his absolute favorite! We read it several times a day! We've been practicing walking with him while holding our hands and using this toy!
Jackson loves playing with Daddy's football--especially while wearing his Dallas Cowboys onesie from Ms. Zarate! Have I mentioned she's the best?!

He loves playing with his toys.

He has tried lots of new foods this month since we're trying to feed him more of what I make for us. His favorites are lasagna, pound cake, and homemade biscuits! He also really likes blueberries. He loves playing peek-a-boo!

He points and waves alot--it's really cute!

He takes great naps in his crib!

He gets a cup of whole milk each day while we're trying to wean him. He always gets so excited when he sees his cup, but once he realizes there's milk in it, he makes the funniest "yucky" face! He's getting to where he drinks more of it each day, so we're making progress!!

He loves throwing his clothes off of the changing table when he's getting dressed or his diaper changed!

He loves when we say, "God bless you" after he sneezes!

Monday, May 23, 2011

Bryan's Birthday Weekend!

Yesterday was Bryan's 27th birthday, and since he was fortunate enough to have Saturday and Sunday off, we made it a weekend long celebration!
We went out to one of his favorite restaurants on Saturday for breakfast, then for dinner that night, I made him lasagna and a homemade chocolate peanut butter cake. On Sunday, I made eggs benedict for breakfast, and for dinner, Bryan chose a seafood restaurant. We rarely go out to eat, so doing it two days in a row felt a little weird!!
Love! Jackson giving Daddy the football he picked out!
We also got him an XBOX 360 Kinect. Once it was set up, Bryan and Sarah had a ball playing on it! When they were starting a boxing match, Sarah said, "I'm going to mess you up, dude!" Then, when she lost, she said, "I'm trying to punch you, but you won't let me!" Haha, it was so funny!!
We wrapped up the weekend with a pinata! Jackson thought it was hilarious when Daddy and Sissy were beating it, so Daddy helped him take a turn! He laughed so hard! It was the cutest thing! Bryan loves pinatas!! We hope you had a great birthday, babe!
We love you!!

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

A Little Hello!

Just stoppin' in to say hi!
And to remind you, that like my Daddy, I'm a stud muffin too!

Saturday, May 14, 2011

Play Time!

When Bryan's Dad was in town last weekend, he generously offered to buy the kids a swing set. This morning after we made breakfast, we all went outside to enjoy the wonderful weather and the new swing set!
I've been wanting to get Jackson his own little swing, but we didn't know exactly where we were going to hang it. Then, the new swing set came along! So after I bought him a swing that's just his size, Bryan hung it up!
He really loved it! He even let out a few squeals from time to time! Sarah loves it too! Thanks again, Grandpa!

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Big Boy Bath!

Last night, Jackson had his first big boy bath in the actual tub, and he loved it!

Baby Gate

While Bryan was on vacation last week, he installed the baby gate at the bottom of the stairs.
"Hey, what's the big idea here?! Not cool, guys!"

Monday, May 9, 2011

Mother's Day

Mother's Day got started late here yesterday, because Bryan's dad was in town, then once he left, Bryan had to go into work for a bit. But once it was underway, it was perfect!
It was my first Mother's Day with two children! I am so blessed to be their mom, and I pray every day that God helps me to do a great job!
Sarah made me the sweetest and prettiest card with a wonderful poem that she came up with herself. Bryan bought me a couple of new books and some gorgeous flowers that I cannot wait to plant! He also cooked an amazing dinner last night all by himself, and only allowed me to stir the dishes on the stove every so often! He grilled steak, then topped it with the greatest sauce made from onions, mushrooms, tomatoes, and lots of butter! To go with it, we had sweet potatoes, (my favorite!) and fried zucchini, and for dessert, he made bananas foster. It was divine, and I appreciated it so much!

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Swingin' Away!

This morning, we took Jackson to a park to swing!
He loved it! Two cute boys! Jack with Mama! Wee!!!!!

Breakfast with Mom

On Tuesday morning, they had breakfast for Moms at Sarah's school. I had a banana and a bowl of cereal that I ate with a spork! We had a great time though!!