Monday, November 30, 2009

First Birthday Blitz

This picture is from Saturday after Tom and I took a walk on a glorious sunny November 28th. November 28th! That means kiddo's first birthday is approaching fast.

I've heard about moms who are planning major blowouts for the first birthday... with themes and even dress codes for the ADULT participants. A theme? I guess the theme for Tom's birthday will be "come eat chili in our house and pretend it's not five days before Christmas." My goal will be to NOT wrap Tommy's gift in Christmas paper.

I got an entire catalog of 1st birthday party products... and a planning guide from Toys'R'Us.

I wonder if I would be handling this differently if his birthday weren't so close to Christmas. Probably. But Tom is stuck with the birthday he got. And he's sure going to get a lot of love. And that will happen all YEAR round :)

Monday, November 23, 2009

Wonderful Wedding Weekend!













What a great weekend! My cousin Alissa got married! Woo! I was the matron of honor so daddy took care of Tommy for most of the weekend (with some help of my parents of course!) Tommy looked adorable in his vest and clip-on tie. A great time was had by all.
Oh, and my parents took Tom home with them. Marc and I actually went out after and wound up at Taco Bell at 12:30 a.m. Ah, it was just like being in my 20s all over again. Marc is still in his 20s. At least for two more days!!


Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Go Jays!!






Took Tom to his first Creighton game last night! He had a great time. His favorite part: eating french fries. He would finish one, then bang on my basket until I gave him another. So why is childhood obesity a problem in America? Jays won, we had a great time and he was one tired kid. Passed out in the car on the way home. He loves to climb stairs. Bet he could go town in the Qwest Center if we could let him loose!

Saturday, November 14, 2009

Day 2- aka THE FINAL DAY

So I woke up feeling HORRIBLE. Bad headache, sweats, chills.. devastated because I didn't think I would be able to continue the Cabbage Soup Experiment. But a couple of aspirin and 30 minutes with a cool washcloth on my head and I was feeling good. Had a V-8 and some cabbage soup that was mostly broth for breakfast. It actually tasted good!

Went to Jazzercise. Got home, sauteed some asparagus. No problems. Then ate a giant salad and some soup for lunch. REALLY had to choke down the soup. It was totally disgusting to me. The cooked veggies just seemed so damp and colorless and mushy. Ew.

Then Marc and I loaded Tommy up for a trip to Sam's club. Halfway through I sprinted to the bathroom and puked up a whole lot of green.... and then I had my husband take me to Hardee's for lunch. I had a burger, fries and a smile on my face the whole time. Marc asked me why I tried the diet anyway and I said "Just for fun." and he said "It wasn't fun, was it?" Good point. One think I've learned from this experience, moderation and exercise are LOT easier than cutting out protein and carbs. So if anyone else wants to try to the diet- good luck!! I'll read about in your blog while I eat a burger :)

Friday, November 13, 2009

Day 1


So last night I cooked up a big pot of cabbage soup and put it all into 10 containers. As you can see in the close up picture, there are plenty of non-cabbage ingredients. Celery, carrots, green onions, tomatoes, green pepper. It didn't smell great, but after two hours of simmering, I tried a piece of cabbage and a chunk of green pepper and they weren't bad at all.
I also found a new handy cabbage soup website with meal ideas that answered some questions for me. Yes, I can have coffee. And even a little olive oil is ok for salads and cooking veggies. So I'm excited. But no sweet potatoes. And I don't think I can have green beans either.
Today I eat cabbage soup and whatever kind of fruit I want. I'm more of a veggie girl than a fruit girl so this could be a challenge. Tomorrow is veggie day. The only thing I'm trying to figure out is what to eat for breakfast tomorrow? Maybe some asparagus? This morning I had some pears, a glass of cranberry juice, and I finished off Tommy's container of pear/pineapple blend.
Here goes nothing!

Thursday, November 12, 2009

What am I getting myself into?

I know I normally reserve this space for Tommy pictures and Tommy stories, but over the next week it's gonna be about me.

Tomorrow I start (drumroll, please) the GRAND CABBAGE SOUP EXPERIMENT!!! aka the 7-day cabbage soup diet. The goal of the diet is to drop ten pounds of water weight for a special occasion. The special occasion in question is my cousin's wedding Nov. 21st. I am the matron of honor. My dress fits fine, and really I'm not that distressed about the state of my body. But I'd like to look a little less puffy. Plus, I figure if I can *see what my body looks like 10 pounds lighter, I'll get the motivation to get back on the Weight Watchers train. So it's really sort of an experiment.

Tonight I cook up the soup. It has a LOT of ingredients that aren't cabbage. Mushrooms, carrots, green peppers, etc. Then each day has a different plan/theme. Tomorrow I get cabbage soup plus all the non-banana fruit I want (bananas are a theme for a later day). I figure if nothing else maybe I will find a love for some new fruits and veggies.

Thanks to Dee for the info and inspiration! I will make you my role model for the next 7 days.

So I don't get any beer or chocolate, right?

Damn.

Wish me luck!

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

My Philosophy on Pictures



When my son is doing something cute, I often snap a picture with my phone. Look, Tommy is petting the dog! I punch in a few numbers. Instantly it's sent to my husband, my mom, and friends in every corner of the nation. Oh, and I also send it to my e-mail, so I can immediately post it to facebook and blog about it.
In fact, when I get brand new pictures of my son, the first thing I often do is post them online. And then I keep checking back to see who has posted comments. Hey, look! Somebody I worked a summer job with in high school "likes" my picture! My friend's neighbor who I met once at a bachelorette party thinks he's cute! Instant gratification! Instant acceptance! I have an adorable child.


But you know what I miss? Photo albums. The kind from the 70s with big orange flowers on a navy background. The yellow-toned pictures (why was everything in the 70s yellow?) of my childhood used to stick to the pages. Now they just sort of slide to the bottom of the plastic pages. I used to crawl into my mom's lap or climb up next to my grandma, and ask them to tell me about the pictures. What will I do now? Pull Tommy up next to the computer screen?
And let's get back to the cell phone I use to snap those instant pictures. I would imagine, like most kids, my son will have one by the time he's 12. If a girl (!!!) wants to call him, she'll dial his cell phone. I can remember in 8th grade, sitting with my sweaty hand on the receiver, heart pounding. Working up the courage to dial the numbers I'd had memorized for weeks (not simply programmed into my phone). Then, once I did it, dealing with a parent, or even worse, an older sibling, answering the phone. "DANNY, it's for you!!! It's a GIII-RLL!" It makes me sad my son will never hear the phone ring and excitedly wonder who it is, instead of seeing the name and number right on the screen.
So as I get ready to post my next batch of Tommy pictures online for all the word to see, I make sure I print a few out, and press them in an album.
These are the ones I treasure the most.

Tommy the Toothless Wonder

My son is almost 11 months old and this is how he smiles: all gums! There have been MANY signs of teething, but no teeth. For months I've dropped him off at daycare and said things like "his teeth really seem to be bothering him today." There's been drooling, finger chewing, ear pulling and massive amounts of gnawing colorful plastic objects. But no teeth. My son is clearly messing with me.

I check every day: not even a speck of white visible on the gumline.

Why do I bring this up? My mom just forwarded me an e-mail. My cousin's baby, who is three months younger than Tommy is suddenly sprouting FOUR of them. So is my OTHER cousin's baby. She's FOUR months younger than Tom. It's all part of the comparison game that starts the day your kiddo is born. Somebody's kid is always going to weigh more. Or less. Or have more hair. Or a tinier nose or more delicate ears.

Something happens the second the nurse puts that squirmy red bundle in our arms. We must compare it to the other bundles in the nursery. How loud he cries, how well she sleeps, even how many times he pooped!

I bought a book telling me about the "milestones" Tommy should be reaching in his development. According to that book, he should have been rolling at six weeks. It was more like six months. I buried the book in a closet.

My child is a wonderful, happy, funny, busy toothless wonder. He can gum the heck out of watermelon, Ritz crackers, and thanks to grandma, even Rice Krispie treats. So while all I want for Christmas may be Tommy's two front teeth (or even ONE bottom tooth), he could care less.

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Plastering my Kid on my Desk

This is the mousepad that now sits on my desk. It replaces a generic Starbucks one I inheirited with the desk 8 1/2 years ago. I designed it on Kodak Gallery. $9.99! The site has changed, and the changes annoy me, but I suppose I shall deal with it.

So considered this a PSA for your holiday shopping needs-- makes a great gift idea!

Thursday, November 5, 2009

Movin' and Groovin'!




Not only is Tommy now pulling up on everything (including Lucky) and cruising from each piece of furniture to the next... he's also mastered going UP stairs. It's going DOWN I'm worried about...

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

More Pictures by Uncle Derrald!














We're so lucky to have a great photographer in the family. And a great daddy for cousin Riley, too!

Monday, November 2, 2009

Happy Halloween!


Had a great birthday/Halloween with my little dino. Tommy's cousin Riley was also a dino- that made for doubly cute pictures!