the crab

I went to Target the other day to buy a float for Grayson. I walked away with this instead:

baby crab pool! It's pretty awesome.

Hudson is also pretty fond of baby pools. We used to get one out for him to use during the summer.

It has been hot here already and I wasn't sure if G would want to hang out in a pool outside. Like his mama, he hates to be hot. We lathered on the spf 50 , tried out a swim diaper, and got in the chilly water. Don't worry, when it's 92 degrees outside the water doesn't stay chilly for long!

He loved it! We stayed outside for about 30 minutes. He had fun crawling in the water & splashing himself. I can't wait to take him to our neighborhood pool soon!

Looks like we have a water baby!

Mama Moment of Glory

So, every mom has one. A time where their mother's intuition or just general mama-ness {I'm pretty good at making up words} saves the day. Well, folks, I had my mama moment of glory last night. It included me, a baby boy, a bathtub, and poop.

Let me start by saying that we have not yet dealt with the horribleness of poop in the tub. knock on wood. I have heard horror stories from other moms so my main bath time goal is to stay poop-free.

We end every night with bath time. That's how we start G's bedtime routine. Last night was no different except for Ben was working late and it was just me and the babe. Grayson had been in the tub for a few minutes and was splashing around with all of his toys. That's when it happened. The face. Around here we call it the "poop face." Original, right?

I panic. I have only a few seconds to think. I can either a) just let it happen in the tub and break our poop-free tub streak, b) race to the nursery and put a diaper on that bottom & risk poop falling onto the carpet, or c) place my soaking wet 8 month old son on the toilet. Duh, I chose option c.

I grab my poor child who at this moment probably thought I was crazy. I put him on the toilet and he stares at me like I have completely lost my mind. I kind of thought he would get stage fright...or just be confused as to why he was sitting on a hole and not go. But, alas, I was wrong. Grayson pooped in the toilet. Yep, my child pooped in the toilet for the first time at 8 months old. That's what I call problem solving!

I was so happy that we still had a poop-free tub. Because poop in the tub? Sounds like a nightmare.

Want to know what happened after my moment of glory? Grayson pooped in his towel.
womp, womp, womp....

menu plan (almost) monday

I love grocery shopping. Love it. Planning our weekly menu always makes me want to go to Publix immediately. It's a good thing I have a baby that doesn't mind the grocery store! I need to get back in my couponing groove. This week I planned my meals around the sales that Publix is having right now. Smart, right? Ha!

Tonight: Panko breaded chicken with peach habanero sauce (from Costco and so good it should be illegal.) and white rice

Monday: lemon thyme chicken, zucchini and squash ribbons, and parmesan cous cous -- this was the Publix recipe a couple of weeks ago and it looks yummy. I will post it if it gets 2 thumbs up!

Tuesday: Sour Cream Noodle Bake by the fabulous Pioneer Woman. I want to be Ree Drummond when I grow up. My husband hates sour cream. Maybe I will tell him this is just called a noodle bake. (hey, Ben!)

Wednesday: Poppyseed chicken casserole

Thursday: Grilled steaks with mushroom sauce, mashed potatoes, and steamed veggies

Friday: Taco Night!

***********************************************************************
I tried the steak with mushroom sauce this week at Publix. It was yummy! They called it mushroom piquant...but since that sounds too fancy and I don't know what "piquant" means, I will simply call it a mushroom sauce. Okay?

Mushroom Sauce
8 oz. baby portobellas
1 cup beef gravy
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
2 tbsp herb garlic butter
1/2 tsp creole seasoning
1/2 cup red wine

Preheat a saucepan on medium-high heat. Place oil/butter in the pan & add mushrooms. Cook for 1-2 minutes until lightly browned. Stir in wine & cook until liquid has reduced by about one-half. Whisk in gravy, mustard, and creole seasoning. Stir together for 3-4 minutes. Remove sauce from heat and stir in the garlic butter. Drizzle over steaks.

is it Friday?

Once school is out and I am officially on summer break I feel like I never know what day of the week it is. Maybe I should start teaching calendar at home to Grayson and the dogs. That would help with that problem.

You may remember that G has had 2 ear infections in the last month. We just finished his 2nd antibiotic on Wednesday. Well, he woke up last night around midnight with a fever of 101.7. Oy. Ben gave him tylenol and and he fell back asleep. Then he woke up around 3am. Burning up and pitiful. He woke up at 7 with no fever...but it returned after his morning nap. Over 102. SO, we made our weekly visit to Dr. Leeper's office. I love him so I really don't mind hanging out at his office, however, I'm kind of getting sick of the stupid co-pays. G doesn't have an ear infection {hooray!!} but instead he has Coxsackievirus {wtf?!}. We are now dealing with a virus that hangs out in my child's throat and causes it to hurt, have small ulcers, and get high fevers. sweet.

I've realized that since having Grayson I have become a little bit {or a lot bit according to my hubs} anal about my house being clean. Having 3 shedding canines doesn't help the situation. I feel like I sweep and vacuum pretty much every day and I still see dog hair. It drives me crazy. It drives me SO crazy that we are seriously considering ripping out all of the carpet downstairs and replacing it with a hardwood laminate. I would love real plank hardwoods but we've been told that the dogs would tear them up just like they've torn up our cheapy hardwoods we already have. I just can't deal with the dog hair stuck in the carpet anymore.

...guess what I'm about to do while the sickly boy sleeps? vacuum. hmph.

a new chapter

Today begins a new chapter in my life. It is the end of something great...something that has made me so happy for the past few years. But, it is also the beginning of something that I have looked forward to for as long as I can remember.

As of today, I can officially say that I am a stay at home mama! I won't be teaching 1st grade next year...that is still strange to say out loud.

Teaching has always been what I saw myself doing. It's in my blood. When Ben and I moved to the Nashville area and I was looking for job I kept wondering what type of school I would be working in. Would it be new? Would I make any friends? I wanted a place where I felt 100% comfortable and where I could work with people I got along with. Well, I found an even better place than I could have imagined. The girls I work with every day have become my best friends. I will miss the teaching part & I will miss the funny stories I walk away with after spending my days with 6 year olds. But, I will really miss seeing my friends every single day. I'm not worried though, we can't go very long without each other!

I am so excited about my new job. I think that this will be, hands down, the most important job that I will ever have. I'm pretty sure it won't always be easy...but I'm also pretty sure that it will be quite rewarding. I want to be the one that loves on our baby during the day, teaches him things, and sees him reach all of those baby milestones. Now I can:) ...and for that, I am very excited!

the first step...

...is admitting that you have a problem. Hi. My name is Laura and I am addicted to eBay.

Well, my addiction is not all of eBay. It's pretty much just focused on the baby/toddler clothes - newborn to 5T boys. I'm slightly obsessed. I've purchased 17 items for G-man. 17!!

When Ben found out he could get Grayson a $5 polo...well, then the problem spread. Oops. :)

Seriously, eBay is fabulous. I have only gotten one boutique outfit for Grayson at a regular store...the rest have been off of eBay! I do have guidelines when it comes to this addiction. I add many items on my watch list before I actually bid. I try and wait until the last few minutes to put in a bid. I'm sneaky! I also will not a) pay more than $12 for a used item -- I have broken this rule for a brand new with tag Kelly's Kids monogrammed bubble & b) not bid on an item that has $5 shipping. That just irritates me.

If our next child is a girl then we are in big trouble.

8 months

8 months just seems ridiculous. I was just posting Grayson's 7 month stats!! We've had lots of changes this month...

The stats:
Weight: 17.8lbs
Height: between 28 1/2-29 inches
Diaper: finishing our last box of Pampers size 2 & then moving on to the Costco size 3!
Clothes: all 9 month clothes

G is drinking 4 bottles a day, eating solids 3 times a day, and having some snacks during the day. I think we are about ready to cute back to 3 bottles a day...little bit of a lack of interest going on. Grayson is still loving being able to sit in his high chair and eat dinner with us. He has had butternut squash, sweet potatoes, apples, pears, carrots, parsnips, peas, mango, papaya, banana, avocado, blueberries, green beans, yogurt, puffs, yogurt melts, and his new favorite....CHEERIOS! Thank the Lord for cheerios. They make our boy so incredibly happy. I have to brag on his fine motor skills...he is so good at picking up his cheerios and actually getting them in his mouth! However, the dogs are loving when he does drop them. :) Cheerios save the day at school when his buddies are eating and he gets grouchy. They get their bottles and he sits in the chair and chows down on cheerios! We will be introducing some meats soon!

Grayson still loves school and socializing with his friends. However, we have entered into the separation anxiety stage. He has started getting sad when I drop him off...which is no fun. Grayson is all about some mama recently, which is great, but makes it a little difficult to get things done!

In honor of his 8 month birthday, G started crawling this morning! Bring on the baby proofing! I'm pretty sure that the dogs are not prepared for this milestone. Grayson has been wanting to crawl after them for awhile & now it can actually happen! I will get a video of our newly mobile baby in action soon! Grayson also started clapping this month...it's pretty cute!

Some of Grayson's favorite things this month are: being thrown in the air by daddy, grabbing Jack's tennis ball when we are playing fetch, his new table toy, any remote, finger foods, the jumperoo, clapping, being outside, banging his hands on his toys, and now crawling!!

This past month has been a month of baby sickness. G has had 2 ear infections this month & has been coughing & congested for weeks. I am hoping this is not a trend! He is pitiful when he is sick but he is a pretty big fan of all medicine...especially fruity flavored ones!

Grayson is about to have 6 teeth. He has the bottom 2, has a top one poking through quite a bit that we are still working on, AND more top ones starting to poke through. That means 4 teeth coming in at once. Holy cow....bring on the steak!

It is so hard for me to believe that my teeny newborn is now 8 months old. I was going through a box of his newborn clothes the other day and started crying. Grayson is growing up so fast! Being a mama to this sweet boy is the best job in the world & I have loved watching him learn and change over the past 8 months. Grayson is so happy and just makes everyone around him smile! I know I may be a little biased, but he has the best personality & he makes me such a happy girl!
Happy 8 months, little G!

menu & a couple recipes

I am posting my menu this week...because I know you are all dying to know what the hubs & I eat every night. I'm looking forward to summer so I can get better at this couponing/grocery sales thing. I want to start doing my shopping on Tuesdays (the first day of Publix sales) and plan my menu based on the sales they are running. I went to the grocery store hungry on Sunday...BAD idea. Way too much money on food. No good. Oh, and I forgot my coupons. Sweet! Anywho, here is the menu this week:

Sunday (yesterday): easiest pork chops EVER! {yes, that will be their new name}, skillet red potatoes, green beans, AND homemade rolls. Just call me Suzy Home/Full-time job maker.

Monday: Spaghetti Pie

Tuesday: Panko breaded chicken with sweet and spicy Asian sauce, white rice, steamed veggies

Thursday: Poppyseed chicken casserole

Friday: Grilled lemon pepper chicken, mashed potatoes, and steamed veggies

I am going to give props to Mary for giving me her easy pork chop recipe. I tweaked it just a bit!

Easiest Pork Chops EVER! recipe
2 butterflied pork chops
regular bread crumbs
1 packet of Hidden Valley Ranch powder

Mix the bread crumbs and ranch powder together. Coat the pork chops with the bread crumbs. Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes. I always put things on a rack on top of the cookie sheet so that the bottom side doesn't get too soggy. They were yummy & even got 2 thumbs up from my picky husband!

Homemade Quick Rolls
1 cup self rising flour
2/3 cup milk
2 tbsp mayonnaise
1 tsp sugar

Mix all of the ingredients. Put in a greased muffin pan. Bake until golden brown...10ish minutes? This recipe makes 6 rolls. So good & ridiculously easy.

In other news, the May household was up last night from about 1:30am to about 4:30am due to a pitiful sick little boy. Grayson screamed all. night. long. I put in for a sub at 4:30am right after he fell asleep so that I could stay home with him today and take him to an earlier doc appointment. Well, we are on our 2nd ear infection in less than a month. Boo hiss. So back on the antibiotics we go! I did get the go ahead from our doctor to start giving G some meat. I plan on making baby food meats which makes me want to gag. Have any of you ever done this? Any ideas as to what exactly to puree? Pureed chicken just sounds nasty...

a sniffly nose & a 1st birthday

I am all done with the sniffles at our house. It all started 3 weeks ago with an ear infection. The ear infection has left the building but now we have allergy/cold issues. Grayson has been to the doctor the past 2 Mondays and will be going again tomorrow. His nose has turned in to a leaky faucet! The snot sucker and cough syrup are our new best friends.

But, my boy is still happy and smiling.

oh, and big.

Yesterday, sniffles and all, we headed to Molly Cate's 1st birthday party!!

The birthday girl was so sweet. :)

It is so funny to see the differences in boys and girls even at such a young age. Molly Cate was dainty and delicate with her cupcake. Grayson rips apart his food and ends up covered every. single. time. I let Grayson try a cupcake. Shhhh..... {yes, he loved it!}

We are working really hard at crawling at our house. Grayson is getting SO close. When he saw MC crawl around so easily AND go up the stairs, his eyes lit up. I'm pretty sure he was taking notes.

They shared a birthday kiss...or lick.

Happy 1st birthday Molly Cate!

a day for the mama

7 1/2 months ago I entered the "mama club" when this sweet boy arrived. I am still in shock that I actually got to take him home with me & be his mama! My world changed when Grayson was born but I really can't even imagine what our life was like before he was in it. I have never known a love like this love. G truly makes me the happiest girl in the world and I am so blessed that I am the one God chose to be his mama!

Today was great. Grayson slept until 7:00...which is pretty late in these parts! We went to our Sunday school class & then had lunch at Bishop's. I got to go shopping all. by. myself. So much easier without a stroller! ....and I got this....

a new buffet for our dining room!! I fell in love with this piece of furniture when we went to Oxford. It was at a store called Stash. It is made from re-purposed wood from India, is beautiful, AND would match our farm table. But alas, it was in Oxford & we were in Nashville. Sneaky hubs called the store in Memphis and they just got the same piece! WOOHOO! So, Ben is picking it up this week in Memphis and I will finally have something other than a table in the dining room. I love it.

I hope everyone had a great Mother's Day...especially my own mom!! :)

eye candy

We had Grayson's 6 month pictures taken a little late...so they are now 7 month pictures. :) They turned out great even though little man was at the beginning stages of his first ear infection!

**All of these pictures are taken by Laurel Pankratz of Eilas Photography**

tuesday thoughts

• I don't understand how to blog from my iPad. I have tried using BlogPress and it says that it has posted and it doesn't. Grrr. help. me. please.

• It is the month of May. Do you know what happens in the life of teachers in May? THE LAST DAY OF SCHOOL! I have 13 1/2 days left. That is so crazy to me. This year has flown by.

• Speaking of school...a child was worried last week that her spray tan was washing off of her knuckles. I'm not joking.
  

• I am loving The Voice on NBC. I think it is so much better than Idol! I love the judges & I think the whole concept is great. Oh, and the fact that Carson Daly is the host is killing me. I used to love him on TRL!

• I am addicted to eBay. I think this deserves a whole blog post of its own.
  

• Grayson had his first ear infection last week. He was pitiful. Ben got sick shortly after. I am now the sickly one. I can't breathe. I can't stop coughing. My ears keep popping. It's annoying.

• Remember the time that I had a cold for literally the first 3 months of my pregnancy?? That was more annoying.
  

• I think my child would eat a whole box of cheerios in one sitting if I let him.

• It makes me sad to think about my baby being closer to 1 than that fresh-out-of-the-oven newborn stage. Does that mean I can start planning a 1st birthday though??