Links To Love

I've hit the jackpot of links on my facebook and strolling through the internets the last couple of days.  Some of these are hilarious and some and just fun to look at.  I thought I'd pile them up for you to enjoy.

I really hope my children are smarter then this.

I love pesto. Every summer I get so excited to grow my own basil and make it at home since it's so expensive to buy. But the last couple of years I've planted it I wait to it to grow, and just when it does it gets super hot around here and it wilts and then I have no pesto and I'm waited all summer!  I saw this recipe and for a second thought about planting some more again this year.... but instead I made my co-worker do it for me and I'll just wait patiently.

I'm super anti swimming in any open body of water for exactly this reason.  I love pools and that's the only place I would swim if I had a choice.

This website is entirely amazing. They have so many DIY projects I can't wait to make for the new house.  How about this jumbo sequin ampersand for the office?  Looks pretty awesome to me!

 I've always wanted to dance like this. This couple is great. Where can you learn this?

Can someone get me a baby goat for Christmas?  I promise I'll kind of take care of it and let Noah do the rest of the work.

When Noah is older and he gets grounded I'm thinking this is a great idea for his to learn a couple of lessons. 

Once upon a time, like in college, my friends would make fun of me when I cried because it was so rare and I was so "tough".  They would snap pictures of me just to say they saw me crying.  It's was a big deal.  Now, I cry almost every day.  Happy and sad, at most sappy videos, movies and TV shows.  When I'm super excited or really tired. Just all the time; I have no idea what happened.   So then I come across this video in an e-mail.  Total waterworks.  No surprise there.

Noah's First Birthday Party

Noah's first birthday party was such a success.  We had many people stop by and join us for some really yummy burgers and cupcakes.  It was nice that everyone could join us to celebrate our little Bear.

We had a great set up with food on the deck and the party was downstairs under our big shaded tree.  The weather could not have been any better.  Thankfully the rain stopped in the morning and we ended up with a beautiful, not too hot day. Of course I forgot to take a picture of the finished table with all the chaos but the party planning was a success since I ended up not forgetting anything.

Noah was such a good baby the whole day.  With the triathlon in the morning and the running around in between naps were a little shorter but he handled it great and loved being around so many people.  He does however need to learn some manners when it comes to playing with other babies.  He has no regard for anyone near his size and uses everyone and everything as a climbing device.  Obviously he doesn't know better but it's pretty funny (and a little nerve-wrecking) to watch him all over other kids.

We did the usual Happy Birthday song and the cake smash.  Noah was a little leery at first but warmed up quite nicely and finished with frosting all over his face and hair. I ended up making a healthy cake, with normal store bought frosting. What I really should have done though is made healthy frosting and a normal cake because he pretty much just ate the frosting and skipped the cake all together.  I mean, the frosting is a lot more fun anyway.
Lessons for baby number two!

We couldn't be happier to start Noah's second year.  We're excited to see how he grows and learns and watching him turn into a little boy.  Personally I'm excited to hear some of "momma" and "I love you"s and get some good hugs and kisses.  Here is to the next year Baby Bear Noah!

Week 52/One Year!

The time has come and momma is happy.  My little baby bear Noah, you are one year old! It seems like this year dragged on for the most part except these last couple of months where I think we've finally figured it out as a family.  You are a wild one; always moving unless you're napping or eating.  You're personality is so big.  You know what you want and you want it now. Just like your mom. You're a playful kid and just all around happy. We love you so much. This year would not have been the same without you.

We're looking at a full day today. We have a family triathlon this morning followed by your party this afternoon.  There will be lots of burgers and beer for mom and dad, who for sure deserve one after this year! We're excited to see how you will like your first cake and hope you take a nice long morning nap so you'll be well rested for the rest of your special day.

And on that note, we're finishing with our last weekly picture which at this point you want absolutely nothing to do with! Daddy's hand finally had to make an appearance to hold you down just long enough for this.

• Stats: Size 3-4 diapers | 12mo or 18mo clothing | The kid walks! | Starting to put things together, stacking cups, stacking rings...etc | Sleeps with his butt in the air | Eats mostly solids |
• EDIT: Stats after Dr Apt: 25lbs 5oz (94%),  32.1 in (>99%)  The kid is huge!
• Sleep: Sleeping consistently from 7:30pm to 7:30am. Naps twice during the day. A morning, an afternoon for about 1.5 hrs.The third nap is pretty much out.  Sometimes it's just quiet time in his crib and that works out fine too.
• Food: We're pretty much all solids now.  I've been pretty lazy about making new pureed food knowing he doesn't really need it and can just eat whatever we eat. Making progress on the sippy cut and will drink 2-3oz during meals.  Next up, cutting the morning bottle and then we'll just have the bedtime one.
• Milestones: He's a walker now.  No doubt about it.
• Mom Check-In: Well, my bad luck with sickness continues.  Went back to the Dr. and found I have another ear infection. Luckily with the medicine they gave me, it seems to have cleared up rather quickly. Cross my fingers I get completely better soon!
• Looking Forward To: Today! Happy Birthday Baby Bear!

Week 51

I cannot believe we're going to have a toddler living with us in less than a week.  The time is finally here and although it's been an ok ride, I'm way more excited for the next year of Noah's life. I'm pretty sure all the party planning is set to go and now it's time to count the days. 

Of course with Noah's new found skill of walking, he was completely against taking weekly pictures because you know, that means he can't walk for 3.1 seconds.  He rolled away shortly after and life was good again.

• Stats: Size 3-4 diapers | 12mo or 18mo clothing | The kid walks! | Starting to put things together, stacking cups, stacking rings...etc | Sleeps with his butt in the air | Eats mostly solids |
• Sleep: Sleeping consistently from 7:30pm to 7:30am. Naps twice during the day. A morning, an afternoon for about 1.5 hrs.The third nap is pretty much out.  Sometimes it's just quiet time in his crib and that works out fine too.
• Food: We're pretty much all on solids now. Sometimes some pureed fruit in the morning but more for our convenience.  I've found some new recipes and made a lot of "toddler" food last week to have around for easy access.  Some broccoli meatballs, chickpea pancakes, and tuna balls.  So far he seems to like all of it and it's nice to have food waiting for him if all I'm eating is a sandwich and chips for lunch.
• Milestones: He's a walker now.  No doubt about it.
• Mom Check-In: I'm still sick.  We're going on almost a month now and it's pretty crazy.  Granted I feel a million times better than I did originally but this cough will NOT go away.  Noah and Jeff still have the cough too so we're all just sickies together.
• Looking Forward To: Our annual Enrichment Dinner at Grand Valley is this week.  I've ordered a couple of dresses from Renttherunway.com as I have in previous years and I'm excited to try them on today when I get home.  Hopefully one of them fits!  I always enjoy this night of dressing up and eating fancy food.  It's like prom but better because I get to go with my hubby. =) You can see the last couple of years here --> 2013, 2012 (and 2011 but I didn't have a blog yet!)