Rolly Polly!

He Rolled!!!! Yep that’s right, our little boy has rolled over for the first time! Yesterday, I put him on the couch (on his belly) so I could take a picture of his adorable little PJ’s with his name on the butt. As I sat watching, he pulled his arm in towards his chest, then shifted his legs…next thing I knew he was on his back! I could hardly believe my eyes. It was fantastic! He rolled for Tony last night too. He’s getting to be such a big boy!

Before! After! (I like the shocked look on his face..."I didn't know I could do that!")How cute are these pj's?
We had a great weekend. Friday night we had Tony’s family over for a little bbq. It was great to spend time with them. Josefa (my MIL) was able to feed Tommy two bottles while she was here & I know she just loves that. On Saturday my mom and I saw Mamma Mia! I bopped around in my seat and sang along with the songs. It was wonderful. If you are thinking about seeing it – go!! We enjoyed it so much that we wanted to turn around and go right back in to see it again.
Tommy had his first major temper tantrum on Saturday as well. He has been drooling a lot lately and sucking on the knuckles of his right hand. Well, Tony and I were playing with him on his activity mat when he started sucking on his hand again. So I took his hand out of his mouth and put his binky in. Apparently, that was the wrong thing to do! Hahaha. He immediately spit out his binky and proceeded to start screeching & crying. He was flailing his arms and kicking his legs and his face was really red. I think the power behind the angry cry completely shocked Tony and I – because we sat dumb-founded for a few seconds and just watched him wail. He’s got quite a little temper! Haha.

On Sunday I met up with a couple girlfriends at Chillies. I had one of my favorite dishes – Cajun Chicken Pasta. It was delicious. Even better was the great conversation had with my friends. It was so nice to be able to dish with them about the things going on in our lives – without having to entertain our kids or our husbands. I think every woman deserves some free time to enjoy being with her girlfriends. In all fairness – Tony deserved a night out with the guys too, which he got on Saturday night.

All-in-all it was a great weekend for our little family. We had a lot of fun, but were able to have some time to ourselves as well, which I think was very refreshing for both of us. It is nice to come back home to our child after being out and about. He’s been baby-talking up a storm lately. So we listen while he tells us all about his daily adventures! In fact… he wanted to say hello to all of you…(You can hear me holding back a laugh at the end. He cracks me up!)

Busy Busy Week

I’m getting a little nervous as the time for “teething” draws ever nearer. Lately, Tommy has been drooling a bit, and spitting up a little bit of his food at each bottle (which never use to happen) – and I know that’s a sign that teething could be beginning. I’ve been putting his binky in the fridge so that he gets use to the cold (and gets relief just in case teething is starting early). I’ve felt his gums and I haven’t noticed any change…so we’ll see.

He has just begun to sleep “through the night.” Tony usually feeds him his last bottle of the day between 11:30P and 12:30A, then he’ll sleep until sometime between 5:00 and 6AM. It’s a good start, and we are really looking forward to the time when he goes to bed earlier at night. I know it’s been rough on Tony to stay up so late. Pre-baby we usually got up by 7AM (weekends), we’re both morning people – but it was nice to have the option to just lie in bed for an extra hour and talk. I miss that. It’s a great way to start the day though, when I peer into the crib and Tommy’s big smile greets me. We don’t let Tommy sleep in our bed, but I will sometimes lay him in Tony’s arms for a minute or two, after he’s had his morning bottle (while Tony is relaxing in bed for a precious few minutes) and the sight just takes my breath away. Tony holding the baby, while Mav curls up on the floor just below them. Gazing at them, I feel as if everything is right in the world.

Monday night we went to the mall. We were looking for a Christening outfit for Tommy. We cruised through several department stores, stopped for coffee (and muffins), and just enjoyed being out of the house for a few hours. The coffee was “okay” – I got this espresso frozen treat which tasted more like a coffee flavored icee. I was very excited about the muffins they had. When I use to go to Starbucks more often, I would always get this muffin called a “black bottomed cupcake.” It was a giant chocolate cupcake with a cheesecake-like filling. Absolutely fabulous! Sometime ago Starbucks stopped making it – and to this day I have no idea why! Anyway…every time I stop now, I look to see if they might have it again – alas…no black bottomed cupcakes. But, to my great surprise – the coffee shop at the mall had them! It was called something else – but I knew what it was right away. I just had to buy one. I saved it for breakfast yesterday – and it was everything I hoped it would be. The moist fluffy texture, the mix of the chocolate and cheesecake flavors blending together – and the chewy muffin top. The entire experience was heavenly. I’m glad I don’t go to the mall very often, because now that I know they are there – I’ll be sure to stop and get one again… and that would not be helpful to this diet I’m on. (Like most things that taste amazing – the black bottomed cupcake is loaded with calories.)

I found the recipe online… so here you go. Seriously… if you like cupcakes or muffins… try this, it’s 5 Star deliciousness.

Black Bottom Cupcakes

Ingredients:***Filling:***
16 ounces room temp cream cheese
2/3 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 pinch salt
1 small bag chocolate chips (mini chocolate chips work great!)
***Cake Batter:***
3 cups flour
2 cups sugar
2/3 cup cocoa
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups water
2/3 cup oil
2 tablespoons vinegar
2 teaspoons vanilla
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350. Cream the cream cheese and sugar. Beat in egg and salt. Stir in chocolate chips Set the filling aside. Mix the cake batter. Sift together flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt Add water, oil, vinegar and vanilla Beat well and fill cupcake liners 3/4 full with chocolate batter. Drop about a scant teaspoon of cream cheese mixture on the top of each in the middle. Bake in preheated 350 oven for approximately twenty minutes. Makes three dozen cupcakes.
340 calories per cupcake (Yikes – told you it was a lot of calories – but so so worth it!).

Tommy is getting so big. It’s hard for me to believe he’s three months old already. His latest “tricks” are sticking his tongue out, and grabbing for things. He especially likes to squeeze fingers and pull my hair. I’ve been working on him grasping things, such as wrapping his fingers around his thinner toys so he can feel the texture differences between plastic, furry, and silky smooth objects. I’ve also been teaching him to keep his hand open on his bottle while I’m feeding him. Of course there are days when he wants nothing to do with what I want him to do. Hahaha. But that’s just fine. There is plenty of time for him to learn all that there is in his world.
Last night we went to a birthday party. Tommy enjoyed watching the other kids run around and play. We put him on the little riding toy, and he held onto the handle bars. It was cute. He did not enjoy the icing from the cake, which Tony put on his lips for him to taste. We have a couple of cute pictures from last night to share.

His face says it all. He's not a fan of icing. (Yes - thats icing not spit up.)

Tommy sitting like a big boy & gripping the handle bar. Me and my boy (I swear I wasn't posing for this picture - but I have lost 6 lbs this month!)

Blue Eyed Boy

I've been trying for a while to get a picture where you can see the baby's blue eyes. I'm not sure if they will change, Tony's changed at six months from blue to brown - but - for now, Tommy's eyes are the exact same shade as mine. I think that's pretty wonderful. So here you go. A picture of our blue eyed boy & a couple others from him playing today.

I Love To Read.

I just realized I don’t normally talk about my favorite hobby – reading. I’m actually shocked at myself. So here we go!

I've been reading this series for as long as I can remember. It's called “The Sword of Truth” by the author Terry Goodkind. There are 11 books in the series (and one that is supposed to predate the series called Dept of Bones). The first book Wizard’s First Rule came out in July 1995, and the last in the series, Confessor, came out November of last year (I have them all in hard cover). I just found out - the man (Sam Remi) who directed Xena Warrior Princess is directing Wizards First Rule (Book 1) for a tv series set to air this fall (ABC is producing). I've always said it would make a great movie but a television series is the next best thing (I guess, *sigh*). I am SOOOO over the top excited. Reading the story of Richard and Kahlan has been a “luv affair” of mine for over 10 years and I am excited to see it come to life on the screen (even if it is television). I highly recommend the books to anyone who’s into science fiction with magic (Wizards, Sorceresses & war), its good vs. evil with a bit of romance in the mix. (A little side note:I almost named our dog Maverick after one of the characters in the books – Zedd – a very wise and very kind older Wizard. No one could pronounce the name but me… so he was named Maverick Bear instead. That’s how much I adore this series though. I am soooo happy. I really hope that it ends up on the evening line up this fall. )

I have quite a few favorite authors actually and not all from the same genre. Some of my favorite Chick Lit authors are Nora Roberts, Sheryl J. Anderson, Sophie Kinsella, Cecelia Ahearn, Jennifer Weiner, Clare Naylor, and Lauren Weisberger. I read a lot of “Chick Lit” and when I find an author I like I usually try to get as many of their books as I can get my hands on. Thanks to both my Mom and my good friend Tana whom share their books with me (and vice versa)…I’m thankfully not going broke from personally buying all of these books I adore.

I have so many Nora Robert’s books I had to store most of them in boxes up in the attic (which pains me). My favorite of her’s is called The Villa. It involves two wineries and the families who run them. I’ve read it at least 6 or 7 times. It’s really good.

I also have a ton of books by the author Clive Cussler. His books involve underwater action/adventure with a twist of history and a bit of comedy. One of his books, Sahara, was even made into a movie. Matthew McConaughey as Dirk Pitt = DELICIOUS.

I just started a new series – well, new to me anyway. I read in my Entertainment Weekly magazine about this movie that is coming out on December 12th called “Twilight.” Aparently its based on the book by the same name written by author Stephanie Meyer. The magazine said it’s about vampires. Yeah – that was pretty much all it took for me to be on Amazon and purchasing Twilight. I like vampire books. I’ve read most if not all of Anne Rice’s novels, among others I’ve come across. It’s not that I think they are real or anything. I’m just fascinated by the unknown. Anyway – I read Twilight, in less than a day. It’s addicting and completely fantastic. I have already gone online and purchased the rest of the books in the series (though they won’t be delivered until the middle of August since I preordered the last in the series {to be released Aug. 2nd} – somehow I must be patient). I’m excited to see where Edward and Bella’s adventures take them, and what she chooses in the end.

If I had had any brains at all when I chose what to study in college… I should have gone into library science. Then I could have be involved with teaching children, and reading! Best of both worlds! Alas… I did not.

I really hope I can instill the love of reading in Tommy. He has a small variety of books in his room & I have been trying to read to him at least once a day. I would take a book over television or even a movie – any day! For me, the characters come to life in my head and I become “involved” with the story. It’s a perfect way to relax and escape the monotony of every day life. I think my love of reading helped me to get through school, then college, and I hope that my son will follow in my footsteps, if only in that regard.

Splish, Splash!

Tommy went in a pool for the first time this weekend! We got him one of those little $5 plastic pools from Babies R Us. It's the perfect size for the little man to take a refreshing dip. Tony got in with him and it was hilarious. He could barely fit in there. Tommy was so adorable in his little swim trunks. His diaper was so full when he got out we had to strip him down and leave it outside in the trash (I made a mad dash into the house with him wrapped up in a towel repeating the mantra "please don't pee on mommy." Here are a few of our favorite pics.

Yes, you've come to the right place!

Anyone who knows me (especially having grown up with me), knows that I have a hard time leaving things looking or being one way for too long. I think it use to drive my folks crazy when I was a kid with how many times I moved the furniture around in my bedroom. I sometimes need to “tweak” my surroundings, just a little bit in order to satisfy my need for something a little different. Hence, a new layout & background for the blog! I love the new look & hope you do too – its called “Harbor” and felt very calm and beachy to me.

This week has gone by very quickly, though I feel like I really haven’t done much. Tommy was sick one day with a fever. He ended up projectile vomiting across our living room covering himself, me, our couch, the carpet, and our coffee table (don’t worry I didn’t take any pictures). I took him to the doctor and everything checked out just fine. He was feeling better by the next afternoon. It was the first time he spit up like that, and I was completely unprepared for the gross out factor. I think I would have gagged if I hadn’t been so worried about him choking.

We’ve begun to plan Tommy’s Christening. It’s going to be August 17th at the church we attend (we were wed at) in Haddonfield. We are both really excited. I absolutely love my church. I always feel so welcomed and it’s nice to be able to worship alongside parishioners who are kind and caring and actually want to get to know you.

Tonight we plan on going to an antique car show. Tony has been looking forward to this for a while (It’s Tommy’s first car show) & I’m excited to share the experience with them.

Let’s see… a picture…here are a couple cute ones I took of Tommy’s first time sitting in his highchair. He’s not ready for any solid foods yet, but I just wanted to see his reaction. As you can see…he likes it! (Though I think he likes anything involving being fed! hahaha). I’m excited, because now he can sit along side us at dinner time so that we can all enjoy a family meal.

Superbaby!

PRESS PLAY 1ST


Create free ringtones at Phonezoo

NO... IT'S SUPERBABY!!!

Our July 4th

We were able to make it out to Cooper River Park tonight for a little bit to watch WMGK's houseband Final Vinyl before the rain started to come down. Tommy loved listening to the live music, he actually "bopped" a little bit. His first live song was Rolling Stones' "Jumping Jack Flash" as done by FV. Just as FV was ending their set it started to rain... so we missed Randy Bachman, but we had an absolute blast while we were there. It was great to be outside enjoying the festivities as a family...along with 20 thousand or so others! :)
Mommy is sooo funny... Happy 4th of July America!
Let Freedom Rock Fest 2008"Woooooo!" (Tommy's smiling but you can't see it that well from this picture.)"Dad are you hearing this?""Wooly Bully" (Tommy's playing the air guitar)Tommy n Me (yucky pic)"Whatcha doin' up there Daddy?""Ok its raining... time to go home."

Happy 4th of July!

I can’t believe it’s July already! Time sure does fly when you are happy and enjoying life to its fullest. Last night we met up with friends of ours to take Tommy to his very first fireworks display. We’ve gone every year with this particular group of friends and we’ve watched how their children have changed and grown over the years. Now our little guy has joined the group and we get to watch him grow up amongst a great group of kids. I can’t wait until next year when Tommy will be toddling around and talking. Then we’ll see if he really likes fireworks.

Tommy seemed to really enjoy them last night. We were concerned about the noise so we kept his ears covered, then Tony took him inside our friends truck before the grand finale (to help again with the noise). It wasn’t too bad. They had some great displays including hearts, planets, and even stars! Makes you feel like a kid again to watch in wonder at all the pretty lights – its like magic!

Here are a couple of pictures from last night. We’re hoping to take Tommy to see Randy Bachman from Bachman-Turner Overdrive (BTO) and The Guess Who tonight at Cooper River Park. It’s a free concert sponsored by my favorite radio station (WMGK) that they hold every year. If it looks like the weathers going to be halfway decent I think we’ll take Tommy to see his first “official” concert! We love live music, so it’ll be nice if we can introduce our little boy to something that he too will hopefully enjoy.

I also just wanted to thank everyone for their love and support. I know I made the right decision about going back to work, but I really appreciated your comments and supportive suggestions. Thank you so much!

The kids with Les (pop pop to all but Tommy) & Tony.

UsAlmost dark.... time for some fireworks!!"Boom!!!"