Our little pumpkin

Today, Cristian took the day off to relax, recap all his studies and hang out a bit with us since he's been gone so much the past month at study sessions for his exam tomorrow. We were getting ready to leave and he needed to find a paper for UTSA, so I sat Adrian down on our porch and took some pictures.

He is so curious. Everything is interesting and fascinating to him. He gets into Mommy's books. (I put them on the shelf in his room, so I don't mind.) He opens the cabinet doors. He slides, scoots or pirate crawls (the one leg up, one leg down) to his mirror and talks to himself. He opens his cd player and gets the cd out! He is such a joy.

My mom got a video of him today...playing with grandpa and little of his latest thing...dancing. He dances while standing by the coffee table, while sitting in his high chair, while being held and while taking a bath. It is quite a sight!!!

Today's pictures, I set him down next to my mums and our family pumpkin...it's so sweet to see the progression of him sitting there, slightly touching the pumpkin, then grabbing it, then realizing that it's kind of prickly.

enjoy!!!

I think I found the answer

I have been debating and debating on what to do in our kitchen. The outdoor bistro set was temporary---too small and too uncomfortable. I tried using a card table and it too did not work. I'm glad I tried because it showed me how narrow the nook really is.

So I continued my hunt and found a beautiful antique table...not too big (although it does have leaves) and not too small to look silly in the middle of the room....just right, at least I think so.

I still have enough room to move around the kitchen, since I do love to cook and I can also use it as a work surface when needed. Our dining room is right off of Adrian's room, so when he goes to sleep before Cristian and I eat dinner, we don't have to eat quietly anymore!

As for the nook, too narrow for a table, but I definitely needed something there. I always wanted an antique server / buffet / whatever. This is a sideboard, and a beautiful one at that. It fits perfectly...I didn't measure right before I went to the antique market and am so glad my memory of 5 ft. wide was correct! It goes great with the table and my great grandmother's things. Doesn't it fit just perfectly?

Now I'm off to find some chairs!!!
Oh, and I'm going to try to antique those stark white cabinets
in the next couple weeks...I'll post some pictures soon!

Adrian enjoying the cookie cake from a couple posts ago

This looks like something new!

I think I can taste the banana!

YUMMY!!!!!

Visit from a friend and visit to a friend's house

A few weeks ago, we went to Josiah's house for Chili and playtime! Josiah shared his toys with Adrian, John Daniel and Julia.

A picture with the mommies

Josiah's grandpa made him a rocking horse and he let Adrian try it out too.

My friend Rosemary and her son Josiah came over the other day to see our house. Josiah is 4 weeks older than Adrian. Every time we get together they are so sweet.
They share nicely, try to talk to each other, and play with their toys.

Josiah looks at Adrian's teething raspberry, then tries it out for himself!

mmmmm, that feels good on my teeth!!!

yeah!! to good health and fall weather

We are all pretty much well. Cristian is exhausted, but healthy. He has his Fundamentals of Engineering License exam coming up on October 26th, so he has had training sessions every weekend for the last 3 weeks. Today is the last one. Yeah!!

I love fall. I think, besides Christmas it is my favorite time of the year. I don't like to bake much, but I love the smells of fall....cinnamon, pumpkin, sweet potato etc...

Now that Adrian is eating mostly table food, I try to make things that he can eat also...no nuts yet.
So I looked on every box and bag of banana bread mix or cranberry bread mix and everything said "main contain nuts" so I kept looking and found an oatmeal cookie mix.
I did find a recipe for banana bread later that evening, but since I don't bake, I didn't even have baking soda. I don't want to drag a 14 month old back to the store for baking soda.

I have also joined a vegetable co-op in my neighborhood. Everyone gives $5 or $10 for a half or full basket of fruits and vegetables. One guy goes to the wholesale market, buys bulk and then some of us sort the goods into all the baskets. It great to be a sorter because then you get extras:)

So I still had 3 very ripe pears and 3 very ripe bananas I had put in the freezer already from the last co-op. We do it every 2 weeks. I hate wasting food, so I figured I could use them to 'bake' something...some sort of bread or cookie that Adrian can eat.

This is my recipe for what I have named
Fall Fruit Oatmeal Bread Squares with streusel topping

1 bag of oatmeal cookie mix
3 very ripe pears pealed and squished (you want it to be the consistency of apple sauce)
3 very ripe bananas
1 handful of dried cranberries
1 egg

Mix ingredients together. Put in greased pan. I used to small casserole dishes. I don't know if it would fill up a 13x9, but 8x8 would work.

Topping
2-3 tbsp melted butter
2-3 spoons of sugar
2 spoons of flour
3 handful of crushed golden graham cereal
ground cinnamon

For topping, mix ingredients into melter butter. Scatter over cookie mix in pan and bake at 375 degrees until golden and toothpick comes out clean...I think it was about 25 minutes, but I never keep track:) After seeing the consistency of the final product, you could also use a loaf pan and make slices of bread.

Enjoy!
I'll post pictures when they are cool enough to cut.

Set out on a pretty plate for guests

Piping hot, right out of the oven

My poor little bear

My poor little bear has been sick since about midnight on Thursday evening or Friday morning...however you want to see it.

I say this not to send guilt to anyone...although many moms including my own and even my pediatrician mentioned the 'letting your baby cry a little' or not going in to get him every time he cries methods to get him to sleep better...so why in the world did I choose this night of all nights?

I have learned to become accustomed to Adrian's varied cries. He has some shreaking...you need to take a breath now cry for when he falls or he's scared, he has an I'm bored and I need some change cry, he has the I want some attention so if I keep making noise you'll come get me cry etc...

So he starts to make a cry around midnight, but it wasn't the "I'm in pain and I need your help" cry so I decided to wait it out. I heard him every 10 minutes or so and then after about 35 minutes he stopped. I snuck into his room and pushed his foot back through the crib rails and saw that he was okay, so I left.

I heard him make a noise again maybe 45 minutes later, but that was it, nothing continued. He actually does that a lot when he rolls over in his sleep.

The next morning at 5:40, he woke me up with his cry. I went in to get him and came into a horrible smell...throw up. I immediately felt angry and guilty....angry at listening to anyone else and guilty that I didn't follow my own gut and just go get him at midnight. There was throw up on his pajamas, on his sheets, in his hair and he had a poopy diaper.

I stripped him down while Cristian pulled the sheets off. I bathed him, scrubbed every inch of him and then nursed him for his morning feeding. Immediately and now in our bedroom, he threw up again, all over me and this time on our bed:) So I got undressed and Cristian pulled our sheets off. I changed clothes and took the dirty clothes and sheets outside to spray them off with the hose before starting the laundry. Did I mention laundry? I think I just finished my fifth load.

Cristian cleaned up Adrian and rocked him back to sleep, meanwhile I emailed a friend about how to get the stink out of her baby's room after a throw up incident (She later called and said, Wash the bumper. It holds in all kinds of smells!), called my mom and cried to her about what a horrible decision I had made to not get him out of his crib (she assured me that this would not be the last throw up incident...thanks mom), and called the Pediatrician's office...talked to an Ask a nurse who gave me some advice and said I could call my Pediatrician during office hours since it was one of three things...Adrian caught a virus from the nursery on Wednesday (there was a boy who got sick that morning), Adrian is reacting from his fall on Monday, or Adrian is reacting from his ear infection the week before. The answer...#1!!! I wish I could say I had won a prize.

My friend who had called earlier also said to get some saltines, Lysol and pedialite...so I made a trip to walmart while Adrian was asleep and I was waiting for the Dr.'s office to open.

Long story short, the Dr. confirmed that Adrian caught the virus and told me what to do. I gave him some pedialite and saltines and he played on the floor with his now sterilized toys. I cleaned everything that he sits on, lays on, plays on, bathes in, and puts in his mouth...etc

I can't even remember now when what happened...I know he threw up his lunch. I tried to give him a little food and that came right back up, all over his clean clothes and clean high chair, then when I stripped him and put him on his rug and ran to clean the high chair, he alerted me with a scream that he had thrown up on himself (diaper only this time) and his new rug...so thank God for old houses and wood floors, we created a new play area in the dining room. Either before or after this he had two diapers full of, well diarrhea...sort of...not too soft and runny though....not yet...just wait...

so after these 3 incidents, we got cleaned up, nursed up and Adrian took about a 3 hour nap...being sick is exhausting and he only had saltines and pedialite from then on.

Ok...so let's go back to the guilt thing...we are working on weaning and sleeping these days, and it seems like every time he stops a feeding something happens, i.e. ear infection, stomach virus etc....so the weaning isn't going so well. And now the guilt, I sleep in the room next door. If he is wailing, I run in, but I tell you he was just 'making noise.' He's been waking up several nights just at midnight or 1am, not wanting to be fed, just wanting to be with Mommy...that's why I decided to listen and wait to see if he would go back to sleep or if the crying would escalate. And no I didn't hear him throw up...the only thing I can say is this...Friday night, after a long day, I gave him a nice warm bath, put him in clean pjs, nursed him and he went off to sleep at about 7:30 and he didn't wake up til 6am! So God knows why he let this weekend happen exactly the way it did...He is sovereign and even ordained it, but I must admit, I told Adrian he could wake me up at night til he was 30!!

So Sunday morning, Cristian leaves for his training...oh I didn't tell you, Cristian is taking his Fundamentals of Engineering Exam in late October and has all day training sessions every weekend...so I was ALONE with all this...
We didn't go to church, obviously, but I didn't want to keep him inside all day, so we took a drive and I thought if he looked ok, we'd go to Lowe's . He did, so we went in and bought a sprinkler. We walked in, got it and left. I put him back in his car seat and we drove home. I left him in the car while I hooked up the sprinkler and then went to get him and oh the smell....I picked him up and felt the drip...green goo is all I have to say...I sat him down on the steps to strip him and leave his soiled stinky clothes outside to deal with later. I took the carseat out of the car to also deal with later.

Adrian and I ran inside trying not to drip green goo on our new rugs while I made way for the alarm system, mind you the green goo is now all over my arm and Adrian's leg. I take off his diaper and set it aside and in the tub he goes...no toys this time...just you, me, a little soap and a bucket for water. We washed away the pooh, got into some clean clothes with a fresh clean diaper on too, and a little milk later, he was sound asleep...again being sick is exhausting. He slept for a good 2 1/2 hours while I cleaned the car seat, the porch, the stairs, the clothes, the bathtub, my clothes and then took my own shower to clean the pooh off me too!

A little lunch for myself and I needed my own nap! So I hope that is all I have to tell of this story. He woke up, had a little pedialite, Cristian came home early (YEAH, GOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) and the two boys played a little and then Daddy rocked him off to his second nap, just a little over an hour. I went and got tacos (I think I deserve not to make dinner tonight), we ate, Adrian woke up, I gave him more pedialite, a little banana (my friend told me about the BRAT diet when babies are sick...banana, rice, applesauce, toast) another warm bath, toys and all. He then had his nightly feeding, but didn't go to sleep quite yet, no, no...Daddy's home, so I want Daddy to rock me...and rock he did...off to sleep a little after 7pm and I haven't heard a peep yet.

We'll see what tomorrow holds...