Five Months Old

July 23, 2006

Lillian-
You are 5 months old today! Time is flying by and I am trying to relish every minute of it.  You are such a joy and bring so much happiness to our lives. You are very curious and observant. You are surely trying to figure out what the big world is all about! The only time you like to lay on your back these days is to play under your activity mat, otherwise you want to sit (with assistance) and see all that you can.  You are such a happy baby and love to smile!  The only time you get upset is when you are tired or hungry.  Speaking of tired, you are a wonderful sleeper.  You go to sleep around 9 each night and sleep until 7 or 8 in the morning.  Your daddy said you take 2 naps during the day and sometimes 1 in the evening after I am home.  Your naps are not very long, we like to call them cat naps, but they seem to satisfy you.  You are still taking your bottles during the day with rice cereal and nursing when I am home.  Your daddy and I tried to feed you rice cereal with a spoon the other day but you were not quite sure what to do.  We will try again soon.  You definitely are not missing any meals.  You are growing so much every day it seems.  We just started putting size 2 diapers on you and you are wearing mostly 3 month clothes.  There are a few outfits that are 3-6 months that fit you and just a couple of 6 month onesies that you can wear.  I ordered some super cute outfits in size 6 months for you, and I am hoping you will fit in them soon!  You are still loving your days you spend with your daddy.  You even rolled over from your tummy to your back for him the other day.  When he has to work, your Nonna (your daddy's mommy) comes over and spends the day with you.   A few days a week in the evenings when I get home from work we go to the park for walks, and you always enjoy it.    Being outside is one of your favorite places to be!  You still love to chew on your fingers and now your toes!  Your hand eye coordination is very good now and you are always picking things up and putting them into your mouth!  You have lots to say, and you seem to make a new sound almost every day.  Charley and Annabelle are becoming some of your favorite entertainment.  You love to watch them and they always seem to make you laugh out loud.  Your personality is absolutely precious!  I love everything about you!  I thank God every day for choosing me to be your mommy!
All my love sweet girl,
Mommy

Things she is loving: being outside, chewing on her fingers and toes,

being tickled by her daddy, "talking," sitting up (with assistance), mornings

Things she is not a fan of: being awake past 9PM, 

laying on her back without entertainment, eating with a spoon

What's for dinner?

Every weekend (usually Sunday morning), I sit down and plan out what we will be eating for dinner during the week.  Thanks to a few food blogs and pinterest, it makes the planning a little easier.  I am still using the menu board that I made over a year ago.  Deciding what we are having for dinner for the week also makes the trip to the grocery store much easier.  I used to find myself buying all sorts of things and spending a small fortune and still having nothing to cook.  Planning ahead really does help, especially now that Lillian is here and she takes up a lot of time in the evening once I am home from work.
This week our menu looks like this....

Here are a few links to the recipes for this week (in case you care to try any of them as well)...

Sunday- I love pasta, especially with creamy alfredo sauce.  Since we are trying to eat somewhat healthy on most days, I decided to try out this healthier version.  I bought some whole wheat noodles to go with the alfredo sauce and blackened chicken.

Monday- We eat a lot of chicken, so I decided to throw in some pork chops when I came across this Paula Deen recipe (she is still a great chef despite all the media hoopla).  The red pepper soup sounds fancy, but it is not homemade.  Campbell's Go soups are so delicious!  You should give one of them a try!

Tuesday- I love stuffed bell peppers, and I love Mexican food!  What a better way to combine the two than with this recipe.  (Just don't tell my husband it's made with ground turkey!)  I also found this cilantro lime rice recipe I think should go perfect with the peppers.

Wednesday- Squash is in season right now, and we love chicken, so what better way to use both than to make a chicken squash bake.

Thursday-  We will join some great friends for dinner for E's night out.

Friday-  I decided to do something nice for my husband and make his favorite meal.  I asked him what his all time favorite was would be, and this is what he said, "steak, my mom's mashed potatoes, and green beans or any type of pea."  My sister came in town when Lillian was first born and made us some incredible steaks using the cast iron skillet, so I will attempt to recreate them.  I don't think I can make mashed potatoes quite like my MIL, but I think I can come close.  The green beans I can handle.  I hope it makes for a happy hubby!

Saturday-  I really like fish, but only if it doesn't taste "fishy."  This is my "go to" recipe for fish.  It is so good!! The fish has a tomato sauce with it, so I decided to make some okra and tomatoes with rice to finish off the meal.  My MIL gave us some fresh okra the other day that needs to be cooked.

Here to hoping I stick with the plan this week...
And as my girl Paula Deen says,

"Love & Best Dishes,"

Our Weekend

via pictures...
**WARNING** picture overload ahead **

I was in the mood to take pictures this weekend.  We didn't do anything super special, but I snapped lots of pics anyway.

Lillian sitting in her daddy's lap at Another Broken Egg.

They were watching us do yard work.

I took a pic when he wasn't looking.

Sweet Charley hanging out with Lillian

I put my sun hat on to weed the flower bed.

Annabelle was following me everywhere and loving the outdoors!

Jon marinated some steaks that he grilled on Sunday night

Lillian played while her daddy grilled

I made a salad with some of our goods from the Farmer's Market.

We ended our weekend with this beautiful rainbow.

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend.  Ours was not very eventful but it was filled with quality time spent together and you can't beat that!

Five on Friday

{one}

I have to brag on myself for just a second...We had a weight loss challenge this past month at work and I won!!  I am so proud of myself.  I had big plans to workout a lot to lose the weight, but that didn't happen as much as I would have liked.  I did really watch what I ate and I kept walking.  I lost 9 lbs in the month of June.  I have lost 51 lbs since giving birth 4 1/2 months ago!  (I gained 57 lbs while pregnant)  I signed up for the weight loss challenge at work this month too!

{two}

I really want to get back in to baking more.  I always love baking and I don't know why I don't do it more often?! I know my husband would enjoy it if I would make more sweet treats, but it may not help me get back to pre-baby weight!  I am thinking about baking these good looking cupcakes this weekend.

{three}

My husband and I have been talking more about getting a jogging stroller.  He runs a lot more than I do, but I have high hopes of starting to run/jog soon.  It's going to take me a little bit to get to where I can run for any significant length of time, but I have to start somewhere.  There are tons of options for strollers out there, and it is very overwhelming!  Any suggestions??

{four}

I could very easily become addicted to online shopping!  It is so convenient to sit on my comfy couch and buy all the things my heart desires without fighting the crowds and driving all over town, not to mention our city has terrible shopping options.  Lately (this week-yikes!) I have ordered myself a pair of shorts, a dress, and a shirt.  I have ordered a Christmas dress (already?! I know!!), pair of shorts, and more bows for Lillian.  My husband doesn't seem too surprised these days when a package arrives at the door.

{five}

There are still a few things I have left to do in Lillian's nursery.  I am not sure why I have not done them yet because they are simple tasks.  I need to buy and hang 2 white shelves.  I need to order a cover for her changing pad (a blanket is our cover right now).  I also want to use some of the left over fabric from her bedding to make this.  Maybe this weekend I will have the motivation to get these things done.  Once I am finished with those things, I will post a picture or two of her room and how it was transformed into a nursery.

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend! TGIF!

Happy 4th!!

I hope everyone has had a wonderful holiday today!!  We started Lillian's first Independence Day off by taking a walk in the park.  The weather, mostly the temperature, was perfect this morning, so we took advantage of it.

After our walk we stopped at Rhino for some coffee and breakfast.  Then I came home and made some treats to take to my aunt's house for the family get together.   I dipped some strawberries in chocolate to make them more patriotic.  I also made individual red, white, and blue fruit pizzas.  I was proud of my themed treats! :)  

We had a wonderful day spending time with family celebrating the 4th of July.  

Thankful today and always to live in our free country and to those that defend our country to keep it this way!  Happy 4th of July!