What Was I Thinking?

I must be one of the most insane parents out there. Today I let my child eat practically whatever he wanted. Much of what Nolan chose was healthy, but let's be clear...today's menu will NOT be repeated anytime soon.

Breakfast: A banana waffle from Trader Joe's with a little pat of butter on it, blueberries and milk. (So far so good!)

Snack: String cheese and grapes. (Two for two!)

Lunch: Nolan and I went to Ruby's with my Mom while we were out shopping. He pretty much refuses "his food" when we're at restaurants. So...french fries, a few bites of a kobe slider, LOTS of Hawaiian bread (the bun for his slider, my slider and Grandma's slider) and part of a 50/50 shake. (We're way beyond strike 1 here, folks!)

Snack: Graham cracker and milk.

Dinner: Todd is at the Padre game tonight so Grandma and Grandpa wanted to go to dinner. Where do we choose to eat? Frickin' IHOP. Do we order anything of nutritional value? Uh no, it's IHOP! I order him a "Rooty Jr."--a pancake with strawberries and whipped cream, sausage and a scrambled egg. Does he want his pancake? Nope! He wants my chocolate chip pancakes, of course! (So much for leading by example, eh?) Does he touch the sausage and egg? Yes...to throw them to the floor with great force. In addition to the few bites of chocolate chip pancake he ate he picked at pieces of my Dad's hash brown and my Mom's toast. (Strike 3 for Mommy, home run for Baby!)

Lord, I thank You that Your mercies are new every morning! I confess that I won't commit "culinary abuse" tomorrow! May we feast on Your Word!

Happy Easter! Jesus Is Alive!

We hope you had a nice Easter! We did! We spent the morning with Mom and Dad at their church, went to lunch and then had an egg hunt for Nolan in Grandma and Grandpa's backyard. Nolan had lots of fun collecting eggs, but he REALLY enjoyed the chocolate bunny!

We heard a big "mmm!" with every lick! How'd my hands get so messy?
Sharing? What's sharing?

Giddy Up, Li'l Cowpoke!

Last week Todd was out of town on business so it was solely up to me to keep Nolan "entertained" for five days. I always try to do new, fun things with Nolan when his Daddy's away. On Wednesday I met up with the girls from my book club and their kids and we took the little ones horseback riding! Well, Nolan didn't really ride a "horse," it was more of a minature pony, but it was so cute! He was absolutely fascinated with the horses from a safe distance and even enjoyed petting them as long as Mama was there. However, riding "Rocky" was another story!

The beginning of the ride...

Halfway through the ride...
My tough little cowboy, at long last!
Yeehaw, Y'all!

Favorite Things...Part 2

There's nothing like seeing new places. Hopefully some of my favorites will inspire you to visit!

• Jerusalem, Israel I believe that every Christian should visit this amazing city. You will never read your Bible the same way again!
• Petco Park Home of the San Diego Padres!
  
• Lake Tahoe (CA and NV) Growing up my family vacationed in Tahoe and now I'm hooked!
• Hawaii The Garden of Eden must have been similar to this amazing tropical paradise!
  
• Yosemite National Park Ansel Adams favorite photo spot for a reason!
• Walt Disney World The happiest place on earth! (the picture below is in Norway in Epcot)
  
• Las Vegas It's just fun!
• New York City The energy of "the city that never sleeps" is electric!
• Palm Desert, CA Relax, relax, relax!
• Bryce Canyon National Park The terrain will take your breath away!
  
  

Just Because He's Cute...

Our future rock star!

Looking out the window for the trash truck is one of Nolan's favorite pastimes. He always hears it LONG before he sees it, but waits patiently til it arrives. He's such a boy!

What's Up With This Flu?

No more than a half hour after my last post Todd started retching. So much for the "It's a new week!" thought. Todd has had more than his fair share of stomach issues over the course of his lifetime (for those of you who don't know his story, he's had over a dozen abdominal surgeries in his life), but this was the worst bout of his that I have ever witnessed (we've been together five and a half years.) He lost 9 pounds in 2 days. He was sick...VERY sick! A few hours after he started running to the bathroom I found myself running for our other bathroom. Fortunately my case was nowhere near as severe as his, but nonetheless it was wretched. This flu is vile! We are so glad to be on the road back to good health. It's easy to take feeling well for granted until you get sick!

What A Week!

This week was one of the craziest we've had in a long time and I'm glad we're starting a brand new one! First off, Nolan and Todd were both sick. Nolan vomited for a couple of days--his first bout with a stomach bug. I can handle icky poops and I can handle blood, but I can NOT handle vomit. Vomit makes me squeamish like nothing else. Just thinking about it makes my skin clammy and my insides churn!

While he was sick Todd had to be out of town for a business trip. It's awful being sick, but being sick and away from your own bed is like a kick in the head when you're already down for the count. To top it off, within minutes of Todd walking in the door I left him and Nolan together so I could go to the hospital to be with my mom who was having surgery. Her double mastectomy was successful and she is healing better than the doctor could have imagined. We are grateful to the Great Physician and to her surgeon, too!

So far this week has all the potential of normalcy since everyone's pretty much back to health. Only time will tell!

Big Day For Baby!

Nolan is FINALLY cutting his first tooth! Most 16.5 month olds already have a mouth full of pearly whites, but not our Nolan! Whenever he seems excessively drooly or more cranky than usual Todd and I have facetiously joked with each other "Oh, he must be teething!" knowing full well that there was not a tooth, nary a swollen gum, in sight. We resolved ourselves to the possibility that our child would soon be the recipient of "baby dentures" and bemoaned the thought that dental insurance surely wouldn't cover such an extravagance. But this afternoon, when Nolan was splashing around in the bathtub, I saw the smallest shimmer of something white. At first I assumed it was leftover cottage cheese from lunch...but it was a tiny tooth bud! I just about fell into the tub in disbelief! There's really nothing yet to take a picture of, but once this tooth fully comes in I will proudly share the evidence of this milestone with the world. It's been a long time in coming! I'm off to get the orajel!

These Are A Few Of My Favorite Things...

Books, books, and more books! Here are ten, in no particular order, that I think everyone should read at some point in life.

• East Of Eden, John Steinbeck A moving story of family and forgiveness you will never forget.
• Les Miserables, Victor Hugo A journey inside the mind and heart of one of the greatest literary characters of all time, Jean Valjean.
• To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee Poignantly asks "What is justice?"
• Incidents In The Life Of A Slave Girl, Harriett Jacobs A memoir written by a learned slave girl in the 1860's.
• Knuffle Bunny, Mo Willems An adorable children's book that depicts the great lengths a parent will go to for their child's happiness.
• The Bible I believe it to be the inerrant, inspired Word of God...and a great piece of literature!
• A Severe Mercy, Sheldon Vanauken A love story on earth that speaks of heavenly love.
• Roots, Alex Haley Amazing history right at your fingertips!
• In The Name Of Jesus, Henri Nouwen How to be a servant leader.
• One Hundred Years Of Solitude, Gabriel Garcia Marquez Magical and mystical adventure.

More installments of my favorite things to come! Now go get reading!

Hallelujah For Naps!

My 16 month old has been on a nap strike. The last nap he took was on Superbowl Sunday, February 3...until today! Eight napless days are eight too many! Babies are supposed to sleep and he is still very much a baby to me! He finally napped again today and in my mind it was akin to a much needed thunderstorm in a parched desert. Thank You, Lord!