Swing!

What's better than a walk in the park on a warm Friday evening?

A swing in a park on a warm Friday evening. Obviously.

William's first time in a swing and already a pro.

Okay, so at first he was a little confused.

And sure, there was probably room for three.

But we weren't complaining.

Band-aid

There is nothing that makes you feel worse then when your child is hurt. Today I found William's first wound. I had no idea how he hurt himself and felt neglectful after noticing blood on his pinky-toe and wondering how long it had been there. Bad mom, bad. I grabbed a band-aid and proceeded to try and wrap it around his tiny toe... nearly an impossible task. After some serious distraction from Dad, I succeeded.

So sad. 

Well, my band-aid didn't last long.

 Here he is after a nap, band-aid-less.

It almost blends in with the pock-a-dots but it's there on the top left. How in the world did it end up there?

More importantly was still how he cut himself??

Then we discovered blood on the carpet.

He had bounced with so much passion he gave himself a rug burn. 

Shoes and socks are now mandatory while in the jumberoo!

Tag

My friend Sydney Jordan tagged me in this. Since she threatens to "hunt (people) down and make them do it" I thought I would comply. That, and our children are betrothed, so I figure I should keep the relationship good between the future in-laws. 

With that said,

Rules:

Post these rules.

Answer the 11 questions that the tagger posted for you.

Create 11 questions of your own to ask the people that you're about to tag.

Tag 11 people and link them with your post (and let them know they've been tagged)

First of all let me just say that I hate "get to know you questions" I was recently at a party where someone asked me, "What do you do in your spare time." GU! are we on a first date?! Secondly, I was holding a new born... Don't make me sad when I realize I have NO spare time. I guess I felt lazy saying my new past time was sleeping. Anyway here are 11 unasked questions finally answered about myself. 

1. Why did you start blogging?

It seemed like the thing to do. I have wonderful friends and family that live so far away from me, it's a nice way of keeping them updated on our lives. Mostly I blog for me, as a way to fight against Alzheimer's. I have the worst memory.   

2. Favorite store?

Nordstroms (I am in heaven in their shoe department) and Club Monico, I am so sad they don't have one in the states... in Eugene anyway. I also love Target and Costco with all my heart!

3. What cheers you up on a crappy day?

Listening to my favorite songs blaring in the car while driving to the ocean. I don't know what it is about the ocean but it always calms be down and makes me happy again. Here in Eugene it's a little to far so I settle on my music or a good book. 

4. Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

I will be in depression after turning thirty. Just kidding. I hope to be in the north west. And when I say "North West" I really mean a suburb of Seattle, Portland or Vancouver. Matt will be out of school and hopefully have a job that he loves. We will be paying off horrendous law school loans and if I'm lucky... Doing renovations to our first home. I'll be recruiting my dad for that one 

5. Chocolate or Vanilla?

Chocolate would be my pick 85% of the time. Preferably truffles. YUM. 

6. Spring must have?

Colored jean capris, maxi skirt, wedges, and retro one-piece bathing suit. 

7. All-time favorite movie?

It entirely depends on my maturity level at the time of selection ... the time of the month also greatly influences my decision. I want to say the movies I watch over and over would be, Pride and Prejudice and The Holiday. My favorite comedy would have to be Wayne's World.

8. Who/What inspires you?

Who: Matt. I don't know anyone who is more honest, humble and diligent.

What: Again I have to say the Ocean. I am a west coast girl.

9. Random fact about yourself?

I am secretly in love with the old T.V series "The Nanny" you know the one from the 90's. 

Yep. I have the first 3 seasons on DVD. I would have them all except they don't sell them. 

10. Dream travel spot?

Ireland and Holland. One day.

11. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

I would be able to fall asleep quickly and anywhere. Matt has this talent of being able to fall asleep while talking if he's tired enough. It takes me anywhere from 15-30 mins to fall asleep. When we travel it moves to about an hour before I'm actually sleeping. With out my own bed, blankets and pillow it's so hard for me to sleep. I HATE it! It's also a bad trait to have with a baby. Once I'm up- I'm up. 

Okay maybe I would change two things. I would have perfect vision without contacts. Hello, laser eye surgery. Well that would work if I wasn't so grossed out and petrified of surgery ON MY EYES! EW! No thanks.

That's it. Now don't mess with the tagging-blog-gods and do it too if I tagged you. 

Erica Cochrane (It's about time you blogged)

Allison Cardon

Sandi Broadhead

Laura Gow

Lindsey Bradley

Shannon Wight

Rachel Watters

Ashley Forin

Trisha Johnson 

Hollijo Klein

Jill Slaughter

Week Two

What do you mean this post should have been written a week ago? No, Jillian Micheals has not killed me... yet (although I came close to cardiac arrest this morning.)
One of the curses of being tall is lower  back pain. Personally, I also have scoliosis... add that with birthing a child, carrying around a heavy baby and turning 26 (basically decomposing) = serious back pain and the inability to stand up straight... . BUT I am back at it and Jillian is the name I curse daily. Curse you JILLIAN!

I just started week three this morning and have come to the conclusion she is mentally unstable. Am I ripped? No. But perhaps if I was physically able to do ALL the exercises I would be. None the less I am feeling stronger and determined. Here are a few new healthy recipes that we tried over the last week.


Snacks- Ok hear me out.... baby carrots dipped in almond butter. Sounds crazy but even Matt was shoveling them back. SO YUMMY! We also tried Kale chips which was a giant fail ... I might have burnt them. Either way I know people who love them so maybe you're one of them.

Lunch/Dinner

Turkey basil meatloaf. I got the recipe from the Planet Organic cookbook. If anyone wants it I can send it to you. I cooked it in muffin tins and then "frosted" them with mashed potatoes/yams. I thought it was pretty cute. This cooked SO much faster (20 mins) and was a great portion size already.

Cayenne-rubbed chicken with avocado salsa  SO yummy and really easy/quick to make. I served it over quinoa and cooked the onions instead of raw in the salsa. This is defiantly a new go-to recipe.

How is everyone else doing? I am thinking of doing the 30 day shred after this. Thoughts?

Boys will be boys...I guess

No matter how old you are... toot noises are always funny. 

These are now the noises I hear on the baby monitor before Will falls asleep. He did this for 10 minutes today.

Birthday Week/Spring Break

Sometimes when you're really lucky, wonderful people are a part of your life. I am lucky a lot. My parents gave me the best God-Mother and Father you could ever ask for- Heather and Jim Voss. Through all of my years they have added smiles to my face along with overwhelming love and support. Heather and I share the same birthday and therefore we are kindred spirits. In her infinite wisdom she passed on the knowledge of a "Birthday-week." When it is your Birthday-week you can be as demanding as you want about the most ridiculous things. Why? "because it's my birthday week." Genius.

This Birthday week was Matt's spring break which was perfect because it meant he had time for what was really important. Me. And my birthday week. 

William loves having Matt home. 

Dad always spices things up.

And they bond over manly things

About half way through the week we decided to drive up to Kennewick, WA to visit Matt's parents.

We were able to get out of the house and have an actual date night which was amazing. On my birthday Matt took me out to "The Hunger Games"!!!!! I was so excited. We were also able to watch Chad in the play, "The West Side Story" Impressive acting skills. Watch out for the name Chad Vickery in the bright lights. 

Matt also made me one of the best cheese cakes I have ever eaten 

It was a wonderful Birthday Week/ Spring break. Mostly Birthday Week

5 Months

William turning a month older is really just an excuse for me to do a photo shoot. So here he is in all of his 5 month glory and in his skinny jeans.

As usual photo shoots are easier said then done....

This month his feet were more of a distraction then his hands...

And just forget about getting a picture with a smile.

At 5 months...

 William still loves reading. Although he is becoming more interested in what the book tastes like then the story.

He still can only stay up for an hour happily... maybe an hour and a half in the middle of the day.

Eat eat eat. He's finally convinced that rice cereal is delicious (thanks for the tips!) 

He is now 15lbs 5 oz and 27 inches long.

William has become SO grabby. He wants to touch and hold everything. 

He's getting a little more sturdy while sitting but has a long way to go before he masters sitting and playing with a toy.

I can't believe how quickly the time is passing and that this little guy

Is now this guy

Sass is genetic- watch out!

Our first family dog was Higgins. He was as regal as his name suggests, he could hardly be bothered by other canines. When sitting, his legs were crossed neatly over one another. Everything changed of course when he saw a squirrel but for the most part he was quite collected.

Higgins had a very sensitive stomach and would vomit during the night unless we gave him a bed time snack of dry toast. I grew up believing every pet received a bed-time snack. One night the duty of preparing the toast was delegated to me, just before breaking the toast up and putting it in Higgins gold dog bowl my dad stopped me and said, "He likes it toasted darker then that." With as much sass as my pre-teen slef could muster (a LOT) I rolled my eyes and replied, "Really dad, he tell you that?"
Argument won.

Now when I tell you my 5 month old son has a favorite book you might think the same thing, "Really, did he tell you that?" the answer is yes.

Looks like sass is genetic. Let the fun begin!