Random Thursday

First off, I am so glad that tomorrow is Friday.  I'm not going to complain (because I'm trying desperately to remain positive) but this week was ROUGH!  I'm so glad it is almost coming to an end!! Just some randomness to blog on the sunny turned rainy afternoon...

...I attempted to take Kaia and Kason on a long walk today.  I kept looking out my window at school and was so excited.  The trees are starting to change and it was sunny.  We got about 20 minutes into our walk and I noticed it was getting very breezy and dark.  I checked the radar on my phone (because who thinks to do that before a walk..not this girl) and saw that in about a half an hour there was a 70% chance of rain.  Needless to say, we walked very quickly home.  It started pouring about 20 minutes later.  Glad we made it home!

{Before the rain!}

...We started watching X Factor a few weeks ago.  I can't decide what I think about it.  I think it's a lot like American Idol...I'm just waiting to see how it compares once the auditions are done.  I do know I am not a fan of the host.  I much prefer Ryan Seacrest or Nick Cannon. :)

...Sometimes I wish I could simply be a teacher.  Not a babysitter, not a "paper work doer", and not a referee.  I just want to teach.  End of story.

...I love how changing a picture to black and white can make all the difference.  I took this picture of Kason last weekend.  The lighting was awful, so the picture didn't turn out well.  However, I turned it to black and white and it looks so much better! :)  What do I not love about this picture?  The fact that Kason looks SO old. Seriously.  Where is the time going?! 

...I love fall, and most of all, fall clothing.  I love boots, and scarves, and hooded sweatshirts.  I think I'll put the summer clothes away this weekend and break out the sweaters!

...I really feel like Kason needs an earlier bedtime.  He gets SO fussy around 8, but I keep him up until 9 or 9:30.  Why you ask?  Because I'm selfish.  I don't get home from school until 4-ish and I just want to spend time with him.  I guess I'll probably have to get over it eventually. :(

...I was going through my iPhone photos today trying to delete some (there are thousands) and I came across a few that caught my attention.  The first...

I CANNOT believe that my stomach was EVER this large.  Duane took this because he couldn't believe what my stomach looked like while I was having a contraction (I promise this is not what it normally looked like).  I think I was like 38 weeks in this picture.  I look at this and realize..my body will never be the same!

The second...

This was the photo I posted to Facebook just an hour or so after Kason was born.  It makes my heart smile every time I see it.  So new.  So much love. 

...I'm really ready for the weekend.  Saturday is our town's parade and fall festival.  It's one of those things I love about living in a small town.  We're having friends and family with kids over for donuts, and then we'll watch the parade seeing that it goes right by our house.  Even though Kason is too young to realize what is going on, I'm excited for him to experience his first parade!  Even more than this weekend, I am excited that in just a short week I will be on a 2 week fall break.  Ah, it's so close I can taste it! 

I think that's about it for tonight!  Hope you have a great Friday!

It' here!

Fall is here!

I can tell because of the cooler air, changing leaves, and runny noses. 

Here's to hoping we magically skip the season after fall!

Kason is 6 months!

Last Friday, Kason turned 6 months!  That's half way to a year!  I can hardly believe it.  Sometimes I look at him and can't believe how much he is growing and changing on a daily basis.  It's so fun to watch, but I'm also feeling a little sad that he's not a tiny newborn anymore.  It's definitely a bitter sweet feeling, but I can't wait to continue to watch him grow!

Here are Kason's current stats:

Weight: 14 lbs. 5 oz. (5th percentile)

Height: 24 inches (3rd percentile)

Head size: 17 inches (25th percentile) 

He's still so small, but the doctor wasn't concerned.  Small mom + small dad = small baby.  

I'm going to take a break from the "Kason loves" and "Kason does not love" stuff for this month.  I'm just going to share what Kason is up to!

At 6 months Kason is...

...Moving all over the place!  He is not officially crawling yet, but he's finding ways to get where he wants to go (not that I really think he knows where he wants to go..ha!) using other modes of transportation.  He usually rolls and scoots all the way across the room in a matter of minutes.  Gone are the days of setting him down for a half an hour!  You set him down..he's gone!

...Eating lots of baby food!  We've tried peas, sweet potatoes, carrots, green beans, apples, bananas, avacoados, pears and squash.  So far, squash and sweet peas are his favorite veggies.  He is NOT a fan of green beans and sweet potatoes give him tummy aches.  He loves bananas and apples!  We haven't found a fruit he doesn't like.  He's also had some ice cream recently.  The doctor told us that since his weight is low, feed him a little ice cream anytime we have it so that he gets a few extra calories.  No complaining on Kason's end! :)

...Growing (slowly but surley)!  Kason is close to growing our of size 2 diapers.  Most of his pants are 0-3 months but shirts are 3-6 months.  His pj's are the only thing that match his age...6-9 months.  It's hard to know what size to buy for the fall/winter with this little guy!

...Still drinking only breast milk.  To be honest, I'm surprised I've lasted this long.  Pumping really wares on me and I've thought about weening him multiple times.  However, I love that no matter how busy I get, I still have those few precious minutes, just Kason and I.  I'll keep at it until I know he is ready to stop.  Or he turns 1...whichever comes first! :)

...Spitting!  Kason recently learned how to spit and he LOVES it!  It's pretty cute and funny.  I'm sure when he's 3 I won't think him spitting peas at dinner is too cute, but I'll enjoy it right now!!

Here he is at 6 months!





And a comparison...

Well, that's what Kason is up to!  We recently had his 6th month photos taken and I can't wait to share them!

Play dates

Obviously Kason is still a little young for official "play dates" but he has been hanging out with some baby boys that are about his same age!  At 6 months, these play dates are more of a time for the mamas to talk and compare stories.  "How often is he eating?" "What kind of food has he tried?"  "Is he napping well?"  These are all typical conversations when moms get together!  It's SO nice talking to someone that has a baby the same age as yours.  There is definitely power in numbers, and having a mom friend to lean on is a blessing for sure! 

 Last week, Kason had a play date with his friend Graham.  His mom, Megan and I worked at a summer camp together for 3 years.  She found out she was pregnant with Graham shortly after I found out I was pregnant with Kason.  We went through our pregnancies together and our boys ended up being 2 weeks apart (Kason is older).  We love to get together to talk about our boys and just hang out.  We decided to try the park, since neither boys have been there. They both LOVED the swings.  It was fun to watch them interact for a short time.  I know they will be running around together in no time! :)  Here are some pictures of our park trip...

{Kason was a big fan of the swings!}

{Cute Graham loved the swings too!}

{The boys swinging away!}

{Trying out the slide.}

{Graham and his mama Megan.}

Today we took Kason to the orchard for the first time.  I think I've blogged about my minor obsession with the orchard before.  I was so excited to take Kason there today.  I remember when we went last year I would just dream about taking the baby inside of me to the orchard this fall.  We went with two other couples that have boys that were born a couple weeks before Kason.  It was fun to talk with them and watch the boys interact.  Here are some pictures from our trip...

{Yay for the orchard!}

{Horrible lighting, but had to get one with the pumpkins!}

{The boys' heads in the apple tree!}

{These three are going to get into some trouble someday!}

{Kason did not want a picture with mama.  I'm sure this will continue for the next 18 years...}

I'm so thankful to have great mom friends that I can lean on.  They help me through so much.  Can't wait for many more play dates in the future!

Hope you are having a good weekend! :)

Half a year

Dear Kason,

Today you are 6 months old!  You are half the way to being a one year old!  Over the past 6 months I have gotten to know so many things about you.  I know just the spot to tickle you to make you laugh.  I know what your food you love, and which ones you hate.  I know what makes you sad and just how to cuddle you when you're having a bad day.  I have loved learning all of these things (and many more) about you over the past few months.  On your birthday, my heart has multiplied much more than I ever thought possible and since that day it has continued to grow.  I find myself loving you more and more each day.  You are changing and growing up everyday.  I love to watch you learn knew things and watch your little body grow and change.  However, it also makes me sad to know that you are getting older.  I am trying to cherish every ounce of baby that is left in you.  I am so glad God decided to make you a part of our family. I am so glad that he decided that you were meant to be my son.

Please know that I will always do my best to be the best mom I can be for you.  I am learning along the way, but I will always put all of my effort into being a good mommy.  Above all else, I hope you always know and feel the love I have for you.  You have taught me so much in just 6 short months, I can't imagine what you will teach me in the next 6 months.  Your daddy and I love you more than I can put into words.  We are so thankful for you.  Happy half birthday, sweet baby boy!

Love you forever,
Mama

Kason's official sixth month pictures are next week.  I just took these in our yard.  He wasn't very smiley because he's so curious about his surroundings, but they are still pretty darn cute! :)

{So curious}

{LOVE baby boy shoes!}

{Loves to spit!}

Destination organization

Going back to work has been a challenge.  I often feel like I'm drowning in a sea of paper to grade, chores to do, dinner to cook, and phone calls to make.  All of this on top of doing the one thing I really want to do, loving on my baby boy.  It's been overwhelming and has brought me to tears on more than one occasion.  I feel like there just aren't enough hour in the day.  As fall arrives so does a busy school schedule for me along with lots of personal commitments that I need to uphold.  We're a busy little family, and this mom brain is having trouble remembering all of he things that are going on.  So this weekend, I decided that if I'm going to survive this working mom thing, I need to get it together.  I need to organize my life, so that I no longer feel as overwhelmed. 

 So here is what my plan is:

I read on a few blogs about creating a family binder.  Within that binder are the following items: weekly meal plan, monthly calendar, weekly chore log, grocery list, to do list and a birthday calendar.  These are all things that I think will help me become more organized, so I decided to get a binder, and make my own!  Here's what it looks like:


{All of my materials ready to go!  My OCD self had to buy new colorful pens for my binder!}

{All put together!  Please excuse the horrible quality of these photos.  The lighting was not great!}

{Monthly calendar}

{Weekly dinner schedule..already wrong for this week! :)}

{Weekly chore list.  This is really going to help me with keeping the house clean!}

{Grocery list}

{To do list}

{Birthday list.  I'm horrible about remembering birthday and cards.  I'm hopeful that this will help my memory!}


I still have two tabs and I'm trying to decide what to put in them.  One will probably be Kason's schedule of where he goes throughout the week (with my mom or sister).  The other tab is still up in the air!
  

Where did I find all of these awesome templates?!  I found the majority of them right here!  I also posted the links under the pictures to make it easy for you to find.

Here's to trying to be organized! :)

Baby food makin'

You read that title correctly.  I am actually making my own baby food!  I almost can't believe it.  After all, it's not often I ever cook dinner for my husband!  I've gone back and forth as to whether or not I wanted to take the time to make Kason's food.  A sweet lady from church had made some for me which I really appreciated.  I thought about continuing to have her do so, but decided I wanted to make it myself.  I thought it sounded fun and I felt like I'd feel better knowing that I made his food myself.  Why homemade you ask?  Here are a few reasons:

1. Health - homemade baby food is much healthier (or so I read).  I know exactly what goes into the food and there are no extras.

2. Cost - The Baby Bullet I bought was $52 (originally $60 but I used a 20% off Bed Bath and Beyond coupon).  I figure I will make up that cost in about 3 weeks making Kason's food instead of buying it.  One bag of peas (about 3.5 cups) cost me 94 cents.  Two containers of baby food cost about $1.09.  I was able to make 9 days worth of peas for 94 cents.  That is crazy!!  I know all of the food won't be this cheap, but the frozen peas were a steal! :)

3. Food provided by me - I have been the sole provider of Kason's food for the past 5 months.  Although that has proven to be extremely stressful at times, it's also been such an amazing experience.  As I keep providing milk for him, I figure I'll provide his other food as well..just in a different way! :)

So today was the day a few weeks ago (I started this blog post 3 weeks ago and am just now finishing it) I decided to give it a whirl!  I decided to start with peas and pears.  Kason's already had carrots and sweet potatoes so I thought it was time for something green along with a fruit.  Here's how it works:

I purchased this whole set at Bed Bath and Beyond.  It comes with lots of great storage containers, which is helpful.


I debated on whether to get the Baby Bullet or the Magic Bullet.  I really liked that the Baby Bullet came with these nutritional guides.  They explain when to introduce certain foods, and how much.  They also list high, medium, and low food allergies for babies.  So helpful for this clueless mama!


I start off with putting the frozen peas onto the stove with about 1/2 c. water.


They steam for about 8-10 minutes.


I (or Duane :)) pour them into the Baby Bullet.



Blend them for about 30 seconds....


And ta-da!  Freshly made peas!  They look and smell gross, but Kason doesn't think so!

I store some in the fridge in these cute little containers (those need to be used in 3 days).


And some in the freezer.  These are good for 30 days.


I made the pears the same way (other than peeling and coring them).  I bought ice cube trays to store extra food in.


I leave them in the ice cube tray over night and the next day I just pop them out and put them into a ziplock bag.  So easy!  I like that it stores well too..



The end result...

A pea loving baby! :)