Christmas & First Haircuts

I'm back!!!

I'm so so sorry that I haven't been around. Between our crazy holiday schedule and my netbook getting a virus, I have not been able to blog. But it's a new year and I'm BACK! :)

First of all I hope everyone had an amazing Christmas and New Year. Can you believe it's 2012!? I definitely can't. By the time I get used to writing 2012, it will be 2013. Happens every year.

Connor had an amazing first Christmas. OK I know it wasn't technically his first Christmas but since he was only 11 days old last year and it was the day he came home from the hospital, Christmas kind of didn't count. So in our minds, this was his first Christmas.

Christmas has always been my favorite holiday but for the past 10 years or so, it just hasn't been the same and I couldn't figure out why. Until now. When you're an adult the magic of Christmas gets lost. But now that I have a son, I get to relive the magic through him.

I can't wait to continue all our Christmas traditions with him. And although this year he had no idea what was going on, I can't wait for the next 10 or so years when Christmas is filled with wonder.

Writing Santa a letter on Christmas Eve, leaving out cookies and milk, carrots for the reindeer, not being able to sleep all night with anticipation, waking up that morning and running out to see all the presents (Santa wraps presents in our house, including stocking suffers, and the wrapping paper has "Santa" on it...AKA Santa Paper). Making both your parents write "Love Santa" over and over to compare handwriting in order to figure out if Santa's real, upon realizing he must be real you discuss in detail (for a 7 year old) how the heck he gets all the way around the world in 1 night, what about houses with no fireplaces? Helping your Dad put together all your new toys, wrapping paper all over the house, fighting with your brother over who gets to put the last ornament on the advent calendar, watching A Christmas Story on TBS, begging for just one more Christmas cookie and of course...spending all day in your pajama's hanging out with your parents, who for some reason, are way cooler on Christmas. :)

Now fast forward to today... we reached another big milestone. At least Momma thinks it counts as a milestone. Connor had his first haircut!!!

My husband had been telling me he needed a haircut for a couple months but I just couldn't bring myself to do it! He kept telling me that Connor had a "mullet" and I just kept rolling my eyes...until Friday.

On Friday we had a Mommy/Baby/Toddler play date with one of my Mommy BFF's, and guess what? They agreed with my husband and said Connor definitely had a mullet! Pretty sure they even said he looked like a lil redneck baby, I think the blue jeans and white T-shirt completed the look. ;)

So today was the day! My sweet baby toddler boy (that just doesn't have the same ring to it) got his first haircut! I have to admit...he looks VERY handsome now. But he looks so much older now and that's exactly what I was afraid of.

Connor's 1st Birthday Party!

Connor's party was perfect! Everything turned out wonderful and we were surrounded by people we love! We missed a few of you who were unable to make it but felt your love regardless. I can't believe it but I didn't shed any tears! Maybe that's because he isn't really turning 1 until the 14th. So for now, he's still my baby...no toddler in this house!

Connor, 

I know you're too young and won't remember your 1st birthday party, but I'll make sure to show you the 534 pictures we took when you're older. But I just wanted to tell you that you loved it. You even unwrapped your own gifts, with a tiny help from Momma you are the smartest 1 year old I know! There were no melt-downs, not 1 tear (from you or me), you weren't shy, in fact I think you played with everyone at some point. You loved all the attention!

We may have had 1 hiccup at the party when Grammie came to me worried, saying you were missing. Um WHAT!? Well we found you.... in the bathroom ....door closed....playing in the toilet. You're a sneaky one that's for sure, and FAST! We have no idea how you snuck away and no one noticed. It wasn't a proud moment and I had to take deep breaths and try not to panic, because after all, you were OK. Every kid needs a story of their parents "losing" them, right? I think mine was at a party on a big yacht, right Mom? Just another life lesson my sweet boy.

We all love you so much baby, but I must say...Momma loves you the MOST. I waited my whole life for you. I knew I would have a little boy, I had dreams about it for years and years. But my dreams were wrong, the little boy in my dreams was nothing compared to you. You are amazing. You are sweet. You are very funny. You are loving. You are so smart. You are handsome. You are my sweet sweet baby boy and that my son, you will always be. No matter what age we celebrate at your birthday party. I love you as much as the dirt and leaves. 

Love, Momma xoxo

Why I've Been MIA

It has been a crazy week and a half! 

First there was Thanksgiving; my poor Mom's oven broke a few days before so our traditional Thanksgiving dinner at my parents was moved to my house. Which I must say...I loved. I love having people over and it forced me to do some deep cleaning that I had been avoiding. 

It was an extra special day because it was Connor's 1st Thanksgiving! He loved the garlic mashed potatoes and turkey, he ate more than I thought would fit in his tummy. It was straight to the bath after dinner for him, what a mess! 

Tip of the day: Do NOT wash the mountain of dishes in hot hot water while baby is still finishing dinner. Why? Because when Grammie goes to give him a bath and wash all the mashed potatoes out of his ears and hair, she will have to do it in cold water. Poor baby! SORRY! 

Thanksgiving in pictures....

Then of course there was Black Friday. I am not one of those crazies dedicated people who are willing to stand in line for hours in the cold to save a couple bucks. Plus when you have an almost-one-year-old he is not going to care that you were out shopping all night, he is still going to want to get up and play at 7:30 am. Ouch. Connor, what happened to sleeping in until 9? Momma is missing it. 

I did however battle some crowds the next morning. My best friend Danielle and I went to Kohl's to check out the toys. SO WORTH IT. The learning toys were 50-65% off AND I had a coupon for 15% off your entire order. Can you say score!? I Santa found everything I had been planning on getting for Connor and I only spent $50! Which earned me $15 free Kohl's cash! YES! I got Connor a baby laptop that teaches numbers, letters, and shapes. Maybe now he'll leave my laptop alone so I can write this blog If only it were that easy. I also got him a baby cell phone, in the hopes it will keep him away from my IPhone, which he is obsessed with even though I have never let him play with it. I got him a couple other toys and a bunch of long sleeve t-shirts in 18 months because my big boy is outgrowing all his 12 month clothes. But the best thing I found? An inflatable ball pit for $20!! I am so excited! He is going to love love love it! And no, I won't mind picking up all the balls, he has other toys that are just as messy, and the few minutes it takes me every night to clean up the toys are worth every quiet moment I get during the day when Connor is playing by himself like a big boy.


That Sunday was also my husband's 29th birthday!!! Yikes, last year of his twenties. I told him next year I'm trading him in for a newer model! HAHA! It was his 1st birthday as a Daddy, so it was extra special. We have a tradition that we go over to my parents house on our birthdays (not to be confused with Sunday Dinners) and my Mom makes us our favorite dinner and we get a mint chocolate chip ice cream cake from Baskin Robbins. YUM. (I'm a horrible wife, I forgot to bring the camera.)

Monday morning I hit the ground running, literally. I had SO much to do before Connor's 1st Birthday Party, which was yesterday. Which I will tell you all about tomorrow. :) I also did a bunch of DIY projects that I will be writing about later, stay tuned! They are pretty awesome. 

FORKS

Yes I admit it, I'm a proud "Twilighter". 


Tonight's the night! Twilight Breaking Dawn: Part 1 premiere's tonight at midnight! Since this is the first time I will not ::gasp::: be attending the midnight premiere, I decided this would be the perfect time to tell you about a fun little road trip my best friend/cousin and I took in April 2010. Plus I need to distract myself from crying at midnight.

Last year I was pregnant with Connor and in my first trimester at the midnight premiere of Eclipse. I was there with 2 of my best friends, Danielle & Jayme.

Because we didn't want to stand/sit in line for hours and hours in the auditorium of our theater, we paid extra to see a triple feature. Is that what they call it? So we sat in the theater and watched Twilight, New Moon and then finally at midnight Eclipse. I think we got to the theater around 5pm. So it was a long long night sitting in an uncomfortable theater chair. Not to mention, everyone around me was eating things like Panda Express, Domino's Pizza, Corn Nuts, and Sour Cream & Onion chips. I'm not proud of it, but I have to admit I may have vomited in the bathroom seven a couple times. By the time midnight rolled around I was so tired, uncomfortable and sick that I barely watched Eclipse. I just wanted it to hurry up and end. So what was the point of attending the midnight premiere? EXACTLY. I said I would never do it again.

So this year, as much as I want to go now that I'm not pregnant and sick, I stuck to my word and opted out. So my friends and I bought tickets for Saturday at 12:20 in the afternoon. How "Mom" of me right?

OK so back to distracting myself...

In early 2010, Danielle and I decided we wanted to take a road trip but weren't sure where we wanted to go. The obvious thing would be to drive to Southern California. BORING. After a week or so of brainstorming, it came to us! We would drive to FORKS, WASHINGTON! Yes! Home of Edward Cullen. DROOL.

Now that we had our destination we just had to plan our trip. It's approx. 900 miles/15.5 hours from our town in Northern California to Forks. We decided to split the drive up into 2 days. After counting down the days for months we finally left around 5am on April 15, 2010. The first day we drove 7.5 hours to Sutherlin, Oregon. I was exhausted and so thankful we decided not to do the trip in 1 day! I'm a control freak and drove the whole way.

The next day we left around the same time and drove the rest of the way to Forks, 430 miles/8 hours. I was smart and let Danielle drive some of the time, MUCH better!

On the second day of our trip we saw the first sign for Forks in Seattle,WA. When we saw the sign we kept looking at each other saying "It's real!" HA! I think we half expected to go all this way and realize there is no Forks, Washington. Joke on us! 

We took pictures of every Forks sign after that.

And then finally after 2 days, 900 miles, and 15.5 hours of driving, we finally arrived!!!

The first thing we did was check into our Twilight-Themed motel room; yes we paid extra to stay in the actual room Stephenie Meyer stayed in on one of her trips to Forks. With the more expensive price tag came a Twilight t-shirt and a bottle of sparkling cider. With how much they charged us, it should have been champagne. :)

After checking into our motel we went to the Visitor Center. It's the first thing you see when you drive into town, and it stands out because they have Bella's truck parked out front. Inside they have everything Twilight, life-size cardboard cut-outs, a visitors log, and even a picture of the Chief of Police handing Stephenie Meyer a PB&J sandwich, proving that he can cook...unlike Charlie. :)

They also give you a map of all the must see spots in Forks: the hospital where Carlisle works, Forks High School, Charlie & Bella's house, the police station where Charlie works, and the Cullen house. So off we went!

After we went to all the places on the map, and took a million pictures we decided to explore the town. Bella wasn't kidding when she said it's a small town, they only have ONE stoplight! We walked down the main street, all 1 mile of it and enjoyed looking at all the window displays. Every store has Twilight displays, even the local lock locksmith. The town has really embraced the Twilight Life, it makes for a very fun experience. 

The next day it was time to drive to La Push. The drive from Forks to La Push is exactly how Bella describes in Twilight. It's absolutely beautiful. 


"It was only 15 miles to La Push from Forks, with gorgeous, dense green forests edging the road most of the way and the wide Quillayute River snaking beneath it twice. ...

"I'd been to the beaches around La Push many times during my Forks summers with Charlie, so the mile-long crescent of First Beach was familiar to me. It was still breathtaking. The water was dark gray, even in the sunlight, white-capped and heaving to the gray, rocky shore. ... The beach had only a thin border of actual sand at the water's edge, after which it grew into millions of large, smooth stones that looked uniformly gray from a distance, but close up were every shade a stone could be: terra-cotta, sea green, lavender, blue gray, dull gold. The tide line was strewn with huge driftwood trees, bleached white from the salt waves..."

The first thing you see when entering La Push is the treaty line, which they marked with a huge sign so "out-of-towners" like us would know where it is. I couldn't help but imagine Jacob waiting in this spot for Edward to drop Bella off. Made it feel too real.  


We had planned to spend some time at the beach but it was pouring rain, 45 degrees and really windy, we only lasted about 10 minutes outside the car. We managed to both bring home a handful of sand as a souvenir. Pretty sure that's illegal. Bella is not exaggerating when she says it's rainy and cold. It took the whole ride back to Forks to warm up. BRRR 

One of the best parts of the trips happened on our way back from La Push. We had just drove back into Forks and all of a sudden we were behind a SILVER VOLVO in FORKS! We were so excited...I'm talking 12-year-old girls at a Justin Bieber concert kind of excited!

That night we got some local pizza and decided to relax in our hotel room. Being the dedicated fans we are, we decided to watch New Moon. Oh.yes.we.did! I'm not sure if it was because we were coming off the high of thinking we saw Edward, all the junk food, or the lack or sleep but we were embarrassingly silly that night. It was a great way to end an even greater trip.

We left bright and absurdly early the next morning. The drive home was an entirely different trip than the way there. On our way to Forks we listened to countless Cd's, updated Facebook to keep everyone in the loop, tons of laughing and hours and hours of talking. Here is what we looked like on the way home...we were exhausted!

For any other Twilight fans out there, and I know there are tons of you, I highly recommend taking a trip to Forks. It's like Disneyland for Twi-Hards. 

I'm so thankful that we took this trip, and even more thankful that I took it with my best friend. There's something about traveling with someone, it just brings you closer. Not to mention it's fun acting like a silly girl and pretending you're not an adult. It's a trip neither of us will forget. Hopefully when Connor is older we can take another girls trip. I wonder where we'll go?


I love you D!

Fun Fact: I found out I was pregnant with Connor less than a month later. I told Andrew there was a possibility Connor might sparkle in the sunlight. ;)

Pickles & Lemons

Ok...we've all done it right? Let our babies try something we know they won't like just to see their reaction. Like pickles...

I let Connor try a dill pickle and he loved it. I mean it, he really loved it.

Today after our Mommy & Me group, we went to lunch with my new friend Megan and her beautiful daughter Ellie. We met at the Mommy & Me group and turns out we went to High School together! Yep, we're from a small town. :)

While we were at lunch I noticed Megan had a lemon slice on her soda (random!) so I rudely grabbed it asked if I could have it and decided to do what all Mom's eventually do right? Let Connor try it just to see his cute face when he realizes it's sour.

He actually sucked on it for awhile before realizing it was sour. I wish I would have thought to have my IPhone ready to take a picture of the moment he realized it was sour, it was the cutest thing! But after a second he went right back to sucking on the lemon and eventually ate the lemon like it wasn't even sour.

I guess he likes tangy/sour things. Definitely my kid.

Crazy busy weekend!

Thursday 10/27 - Connor and I attend a Mommy & Me group at our local Kaiser every Thursday, since it was the Thursday before Halloween everyone decided to bring their babies in costume! They were all so adorable! We tried really hard to get a group picture of the babies but being that they range in age from 6 months to 1 year, you can imagine how impossible difficult that was. But we tried and here is what we ended up with...

Friday 10/28 - Andrew works in construction and work has been slow so we are broke broke which means he has random days off. He had Friday off and we decided to take Connor to the pumpkin patch assuming it would be crazy packed on Saturday. Since Connor and I had just gone with our playgroup we knew our way around and showed Daddy our favorite parts, like the giant box of corn kernels! So we spent some time looking at the animals, taking silly pictures, playing in the corn kernels and then finally picking out the perfect pumpkin for Connor's first Halloween. 

Saturday 10/29 - Now that Connor is close to walking I decided I should probably get him his first pair of real shoes. Grammie offered to buy them for him, so off to the Outlet Mall we went. Other Mommies told me to go to Stride Rite for his first pair of shoes because they have stages. Stage 1 is for babies. You know the shoes that are just cute but serve to purpose. Stage 2 is for early walkers. Babies who crawl most of the time but are learning to walk. This is what stage Connor is in. Stage 3 is for babies exclusively walking. I picked a pair of shoes that I felt would go with everything. I didn't want to get him more than 1 pair of shoes because he'll soon need Stage 3. 

FUN FACT: He's a size 4 wide. Apparently he has "tall feet" aka fat chubby feet. :)

Sunday 10/30 - We decided to save the pumpkin carving for Sunday Family Day. Connor was in a horrible mood because he's teething and won't nap not very interested in carving pumpkins.
But after a little encouraging he played with some of the slimy gooey pumpkin guts. That is the correct term right? So I took a million a few pictures before he had a complete meltdown. Then Grammie took him in the house while Mommy carved a Monster into his pumpkin. Then Connor enjoyed his first spaghetti dinner (so many firsts!) followed by a pickle! 

Monday 10/31 - Fast forward to Halloween. It's also our Monday playgoup. We decided to go to a drop-in kinder gym that morning. Of course being Halloween all the babies came in costume. It was so much fun! Connor was all over the place. Maybe that's why I am EXTRA tired yesterday? 

That evening we took Connor over to his Great Aunt Carol's to trick-or-treat and see his cousins. His cousin's Zack and Daniel were dressed as Mario & Luigi and I thought Connor looked like Yoshi! So for the rest of the night he was Yoshi instead of just a silly dinosaur. :) 

Next we went to Grammie & Grandpa's for a quick dinner and a couple houses of trick-or-treating. Connor has no idea that this will soon be a day he and his stomach cherish. FREE CANDY! But for now he just had fun getting extra attention from everyone.

It was a long day and Connor was more than happy to put on his Halloween jammies, have a warm bottle and go to bed. 

I'm sure to him it seemed like any other day. To me however, it was another milestone, another first, another special memory of our new family of 3.

Mental Note: Remember to hand someone else the camera and ask them to take a picture of Connor and I, especially on special occasions such as his first Halloween. Sigh.

Playgroup and Pumpkins

This week our Playgroup decided to meet at a Pumpkin Patch.

We had so much fun! The kids loved trying to eat playing on the giant haystack and in the box full of corn kernels! I can't wait to go back this weekend with Connor and my husband and actually pick out our pumpkins. :)

When we got home Connor enjoyed a dill pickle and then took a nap. What a life!

Book Club Munchies

As I've mentioned previously I just joined a book club. It was my month to choose the book and I chose The Midwife's Confession by Diane Chamberlain. Since it was my book choice, I was also responsible for bringing a snack to our meeting. I really couldn't make up my mind on whether I wanted to bring finger foods or sweets, so I decided on both. I'm sticking with my staples, spinach dip and ham rolls. They're always a huge hit whenever I make them. I also decided to make Halloween themed (I just LOVE a theme) cupcakes and one of my new favorites, Chex Muddy Buddies.

Spinach Dip

• 10 oz frozen spinach - chopped
• 1 package Knorr Leek Soup
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1 cup sour cream
• salt & pepper

Note: For larger parties (more than 15 people) I double the batch.

Start by defrosting your spinach. If I forget to defrost it I don't have time to let it defrost, I put it in a colander and run hot water over it for a couple of minutes. Then run cool water over it, squeeze out the water and put spinach in a mixing bowl.

Add 1 cup mayonnaise, 1 cup sour cream, leek soup and a dash of salt and pepper. Mix well. I find using a fork instead of a spoon to mix it works the best to separate the spinach.

Cover and let it set up in the refrigerator for at least 4-6 hours for best results. I like to make it the night before and then add a little mayonnaise the next day if needed.

I always serve it with sourdough bread.

Enjoy!

*I've had quite of few people tell me I make it wrong. They say I'm supposed to use vegetable soup. I use my Mom's recipe and she's been making it this way for years. She said the recipe used to be on the back of the Leek Soup package and has just recently been changed and put on the back of the Vegetable Soup package. I've had it both ways and HANDS DOWN prefer it with Leek Soup. My spinach dip is always the first thing to run out at parties so other must agree. :)


Ham Rolls

• 1 lb Cooked Ham - sliced
• Dill Pickles
• Cream Cheese
• Paper towels

Note: For larger parties (more than 15 people) I double the batch.

Before you do anything, take your cream cheese out of the refrigerator for about an hour or so and let it soften. This is a MUST or it won't spread easy and you will rip your ham.

You'll need to dry each piece of ham individually. If it's wet (I buy the kind with water added) it makes spreading the cream cheese a problem. Slice pickles in quarters.

Spread cream cheese on each end of the ham. Some people spread the cream cheese on the entire piece of ham. I don't because you end up ripping your ham and it tastes just the same either way, not to mention it's much easier just spreading it on the ends.


Place a pickle (or two if 1 isn't long enough) on one end of the ham. Then roll.
Cut in half. 

 

Arrange on a platter and enjoy!

Chex Muddy Buddies (this recipe is on the back of the Chex cereal box)

• 9 cups Rice Chex cereal (you can use any version, Rice Chex, Corn Chex, etc.)
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 1/4 cup butter or margarine
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar 

Note: I forgot to buy Vanilla so I didn't add it this time. Oops.

Microwave chocolate chips, peanut butter and butter uncovered on High 1 minute; stir. Microwave about 30 seconds longer or until mixture can be stirred smooth. Pour mixture over cereal, stirring until evenly coated. Pour into 2-gallon resealable food-storage plastic bag. Stir in vanilla.

Add powdered sugar. Seal bag; shake until well coated. Spread on waxed paper to cool. Store in airtight container in refrigerator.  

YUM!

Halloween Cupcakes

• 1 box cake mix and all the ingredients it calls for (I used white cake because it's my fave)
• White frosting (I used whipped vanilla)
• Black cake icing
• Zip lock bags
• Cake frosting tips
• Food coloring
• Halloween Theme baking cups

Bake your cupcakes following the directions on the back of the box. Let them cool completely before frosting them.

I decided I wanted to make green monster-ish cupcakes (since I need to practice for Connor's 1st Birthday) and pumpkin cupcakes. I was originally going to also do white ghosts but scrapped the idea when they did NOT turn out cute. So I did cute BOO's instead. Hey you gotta improvise right!?

I used food coloring to get the desired color although no matter how many drops I added I could NOT get the color any darker than what you see.

For the monster-ish cupcakes I wanted a fury look. So I used a star cake frosting tip. I cut a small hole in the corner of the zip lock bag, put the tip in and then spooned some green frosting into the bad. Homemade piping bag!

For the pumpkin and BOO cupcakes I just frosted normally with a knife and used the black icing to decorate. I did use some of the green frosting with the star tip to put some green on the pumpkins. :) 

They didn't turn out quite as good as I hoped but the girls promised they were cute! (They got a little banged up on the drive over)

Connor hung out with me the entire time I made all these goodies. He was my Official Taste Tester, even though he only got to taste some Chex cereal before I added all the chocolaty-peanut buttery-goodness. But he still loved it. 

I hope you use some of these recipes for your future parties/book club meetings/family days. Enjoy!

***Most of these pictures were taken with my Iphone must remember to charge my Canon so please excuse the poor quality. The picture of each recipe finished IS taken with a Canon Rebel T2i thanks to Ashley :)***