Tuesday Ramblings...

-Real class today.  Learned alot in Earth Science.  I'm going to have to make myself enjoy World History.  Geometric Structures..is...interesting.
-Punkin' has been EXTRA whiny lately.  I'm hoping it just his teeth (he still only has 4).
-He has been jibber-jabbing so much more lately!  I even get a MA-MAH out of him alot!
-He would play outside 24/7 if I would let him.
-The love for the outdoors has resulted in more than one bath a day a few times!  :O
-He gets so red and hot when he plays outside...  :/
-Pops leave for Colorado tomorrow to go Elk hunting!
-We sure are gonna miss him, and I KNOW he's gonna miss his Punkin' even more!
-I hope he gets a BIG ONE!  He never has, and has gone for 5 or 6 years now!  He has been working so hard loosing weight, and getting in shape, we would love for him to come home with a kill!
-I have been trying to get Punkin' to lay down earlier at night, so A)he won't sleep in as late (causing me to sleep in when I don't have class and wasting half of my day away) & B)so I can't get stuff done at night before 11!
-We went & ate at the state's newest Panera tonight!  I had never been, and I LOVED it! Most people wouldn't like what I got, but it was perfect for ME!  Mozzarella & tomato basil panini!
-I haven't blogged in a while because @NickJacobsen told me I am almost out of space on my computer and won't be able to upload but a few pictures on my computer.  #mustbyexternalharddrive
-I have Punkin's invites ALMOST ready to be mailed out!  Just need some stamps!  We'll do that tomorrow!
-We all get water when we go out to eat now.   Saves dad at LEAST 10 bucks!  (I should ask him for the difference!)  :P
-I LOOOVE my new place & am loving cooking dinner on my own again!
-I love finding & trying new semi-easy recipes online!  Send some my way!
-I guess you could say I've found a new found love for cooking.  I never-EVER thought this day would come!
-I miss @KellySMagee.  So does Punkin.
-I cannot believe my baby will be 1.  NEXT.WEEK.
-This time last year, I was so.miserable.  I was one day OVER my due date, and could NOT believe that my Punkin' wasn't here yet.
-Sometimes I see pregnant ladies and cry, because I want another one.  But then I realize I'm crazy!  HA!
-I am ready to bust out my fall decorations!  I guess I can do that...uhh...tomorrow!
-Going to try some of PW's recipes this week and I can't wait!

Back to school for Mommy!

So...back to school for Mommy today!  It actually went quite well, except for I was late to my first class because I couldn't find a dang parking spot!  UHH!  UCA!  Oh well!

I have been a busy lil bee ALL week trying to get stuff done & taking care of before school starts.  Buying books, paying tuition, returning stuff to stores, grocery shopping, school supplies, stuff for Punkin' while I'm gone etc.

I am so lucky to have a babysitter come in our home & watch him while I'm in class!  WHAT A BLESSING!  I love knowing that he is in his own environment doing HIS thing on HIS routine..NOT someone else's!  She said he was good today...but we'll see!  The fits are starting to get more dramatic and more frequent.  From my sweet lil boy you ask?  YES!!!  When I got home he was like, "Oh yeah!  Mommy...I forgot a/b you!  :P"  So that was a good feeling knowing he was glad to see me but didn't really "miss" me ya know!?

Dad took us out to eat one day this week.  Punkin' loves his Pops so much...you can just tell how excited he is to see him EVERY TIME!

Do they not look JUST alike?!

I am afraid that this is what our nights are going to look like from now on.  Homework.  Homework...and a little more homework.  For me, Amy & G.  G is in Algebra II this year and math is not his best subject (:P)!  I have always enjoyed & been willing to help him with math (especially since that's what I'm going to school for!).  He is doing things I haven't done in years...so it takes me a bit to remember how to do things!  If I don't know how to do them, then surely Amy does!  She's a math major...STRAIGHT up!  Ha!

I think between the two of us...we might have helped him out a little bit!  At least he did his homework! :P  He is going to make an A in this class if it's up to us!

Enchilada Lasagna

I found this recipe the other day online & just KNEW I had to try it out!  I was very impressed with the results & will have to fix it again very soon!

Ingredients:  

6 tortillas

3-4 boneless, skinless ckn. breasts, cooked & shredded

1 tsp. cumin

pinch of cayenne pepper

1 can black beans

1 can of corn

1/2 bag of frozen onions & pepper mixture

1 tbsp. olive oil

2 10 oz. can enchilada sauce (I used red)

2 cups shredded cheese

For filling:  Heat skillet on medium heat & add olive oil, onions & peppers.  Saute until soft, about 5-6 minutes.  

Add chicken (I just shredded cooked breasts), cumin & cayenne

Add 1 can enchilada sauce, black beans & corn; 1 cup of cheese.  Stir until warm & combined.

Spray a baking dish (9x13) with non-stick spray & layer two tortillas on the bottom.  Top with filling to cover.

Cover with another layer of 2 tortillas...

& one more filling to cover & one more layer of tortillas.

Top with remaining cup of cheese & drizzle the other can of enchilada sauce of top.

Bake for 25-30 minutes @ 375.

Would be good served with mexican rice & topped with sour cream!

TA-DAH!  I hope some of you try it and like!

UPDATE!

Run down on the last few weeks of life...

The week before we moved, Kelly, Ryder & I ran to LR for a quick dinner trip w/ Kyle.  Ryder LOVES Kyle & Kyle loves him!  Ha!  Kyle likes to make him do "Crazy Boy"!  HAHA!  We ate @ Izzy's and I was still on my grill cheese tomato basil kick at the time!

Not as good as Hammontree's...but it'll do!

We got to move into our house a day earlier than planned which was semi nice & semi HECTIC!  Everything is finally (well almost) here and put in it's place except for a few things...I guess it just takes time!

A few days after we moved in, it was time.to.get.out.of.the.house!  Kelly, Ryder & I met Pooh in LR for a little lunch date @ Pei Wei.  We always seem to go there..it's just SO good!  Punkin' was so good at lunch & enjoyed some rice!  :)  It was great to see Pooh before she went back to school & things get completely HECTIC till after Homecoming (which BTW I canNOT wait for TUNES!)

We headed outside after we were done eating and Punkin' ran up and down the sidewalk.  The three of us had to take turns walking with him because he was wearing.me.out going back and forth!  HA!  He is just a lil boy FULL of some crazy energy!

Apparently I have a cleaner on my hands!  :P  After cleaning up here & there the other day Punkin' would literally "vacuum" the floor when I was done!  He did this for 15-20 minutes.  It kept him quite, and let me get some stuff done!  HA!

This should show you that I actually DO clean if he knows how to mimic me!  :P

He was having a blast!  Couldn't get enough of it!  He's also been getting in the pantry & getting the feather duster out & "sweeping" the floor.  I've finally just made it his toy...not a clean utensil!  :P

A few nights before Kelly moved back to school, we all cooked dinner over here!  It was alot of fun!  We had good'ole southern Poppyseed Chicken with bread and salad!  & sweet tea of course!

Jonathan feeding Punkin!

The girls busy in the kitchen!  I couldn't ask for better friends to hang out with these last few weeks of summer!

Of course we cooked a few of these...and played some cards later that night.  Which BTW..I'm pretty good at ERS...and WON BS two times in a row...WITHOUT LYING.  Just sayin...

Today, Jake & I took Punkin' to Toys R Us in LR to do a little birthday shopping.  We knew we wanted to get him just one main big present and call it done! 

We had fun shopping around and trying some crazy hats on Punkin!  I wish he would leave them on his head!

I think this one's HA.LAR.IOUS!  It looks like the little leprechaun is waving at you!  HA!  :P

So...sad story.  THIS is what we ended up getting him.  After we saw it, we knew that that was the present perfect for Punkin', no questions asked.  We even bought a two year warranty on it...in case I do anything crazy like run over it in the driveway or something.  I knew Punkin' may not be able to make it go quite just yet...but surely he will before long!

So...I throw it in the back of the truck while Jake's getting Punkin' buckled in his seat.  No big deal.  It wasn't heavy or anything.  We stopped & got some ice cream and headed back to town. 

We're driving across the Arkansas River Bridge and this guy in a car beside us has his window rolled down waving towards the back of the truck saying something...I immediately look back and the 4wheeler.is.gone.  I balled.  & balled.  & balled.  & balled.  I was so upset.  I'm still upset about it.  I told Jake to turn around, & that we had to go get it.  He said there was not way he was going to turn around and come back, pull over on the skinny shoulder of the bridge to get a 4wheeler.  No.  I was then even MORE upset.  But after a while I calmed down when Jake knocked some sense into me saying..."It can be replaced."  He's right...but I felt SO bad, and like it was all.my.fault.  It wasn't my fault...but I do feel bad.  Punkin' better enjoy this 4wheeler!  I'm gonna order another one online tomorrow...  :/  BTW...I cried telling my parents the story.  I guess next time I'll know better!

sneak peak

a festive t shirt...

...some fun new temporary toys...

& a sweet lil face...

I went out in the scorching heat today to shoot some pics for Ryder's party invites.  Of course the ones I'm using are NOT on here...but here are some funny ones that will make you laugh!

He only cared about getting.out.of.that.chair.

Then he tumped it over & fell himself...ha!  But of course...didn't bother him!

Sneakin' outta the chair!  Ha!  I love my CRAZY BOY!

eight. 9. ten. {11 months}

it's hard to believe that my lil booger turned 11 months old yesterday.  wow how times flies.  it made me realize i better kick it into gear for the big birthday party!  i'm sure I say it every month, but he has definitely changed more in the last month than any other month!

-He started walking @ 10.5 months and has.not.stopped.since.  OH MY!  No one tells you that the walking stage is harder than the newborn stage!

-I moved him up to size 4 diapers!

-He is wearing 12-18 month clothing...

-Into EVERYTHING.   I pop his hand and it does not bother the child a bit!  ha!

-He loves grilled cheese.

-Isn't loving real fruit (aka not the baby food kind)...we're working on it though.

-He has improved a lot with his sippy cup, but still working on the transition.

-Size 4ish shoe...but I bought size 6 for the fall.

-4 teeth.  2 on top 2 on the bottom.

-He's not interested in any of HIS toys.  Only things he shouldn't have!

-His eyes change colors depending on what he's wearing.

-Always still so happy, but can be a TOOT for sure!

-Loves the church nursery...but happy to see me when I get there!

-Eating out has gotten to be a handful...but still fun!

-He is in his big boy car seat & facing the front and loves it so.much.better!

-He can give people five.

-Act like he's on the phone when you say "hello"

-When you ask him if he's a crazy boy...he shakes his head "no" but in a CRAZY way!  :P

-Can point to someone's nose when asked.

-He has quit saying "bye-bye" and only waves now.

-He pushed open the glass front door today (when it wasn't locked, but while I was watching) & stepped out onto the front porch & acted like it was no big deal!

-He tends to ignore me when he wants to!  HA!

-Somehow, someway he can always find my camera and get a hold of it!

-He can grab anything off of furniture if he reaches hard enough!

-I have even caught him standing up on ledges of furniture to be able to reach the top of it.  OMG.

-He went on his first vacation & did great!!

-Who knew someone so little & who hasn't been with me very long could be so special & bring so much joy into my life each & everyday!  I love you Punkin'!

the things my Punkin' can do...

I've been waiting for this day to happen.  It finally did.  Sweet sweet boy!

He has a toy cell phone that he just loves, so earlier this week I put it up against my ear and said "hello".  He started putting his hand up by his ear like he had a cell phone when ever someone said "hello".  I couldn't believe he understood so fast!  Uncle G had given him an old cell phone and he started walking around with it up against his ear today!  Who knew he even knew what a cell phone was!

KeeKee taught him this week that this "dog" looks like our dog Trixi.  So when we open up the book and say, "Where's Trixi" he smiles REAL big and points to the dog (here he is pointing with his cell phone!)  HA!

I'm working on all the other words in the book with him.  Not going as well as "Trixi" though!  I got him some new word book for his birthday as well as some colors!  I can't wait to work on them with him!

He can also sign "all done" when he is finished eating.  We are working on "more".

Not such a perfect day on the lake...

The whole time we were on vacation is was 100 plus degrees and sunny ALL.DAY.LONG.  The one day we have rented a boat for the morning, it is cloudy & overcast.  We decided to just go for it cause you couldn't get you money back.  

We spent part of the morning driving AWAY from the clouds and the rain!  Ha!  Like we were going to out run the storm or something!

Punkin' loved being on the boat and did not cry once!  I love how he looked even chunkier in that biggo life vest!  

He went for a little dunk in the water after Uncle G got done tubing.

JT fixed his hair like that to match his!  The boys went and jumped some cliffs & stuff.  I wanted to get in but was too afraid of being cold after I got out of the water, because it was not SUNNY!

All that to say...it started POURING.DOWN.RAIN. not long after we got out there.  Harder than I have ever seen and we headed back to the mariana to turn in the boat.  BOO.  It was miserable.  I was so worried about our phones, cameras, video camera...and not to mention PUNKIN!  We jumped out of the boat, had to RUN through the rain to take cover, then RUN back through the rain to our car!  We just laughed and said we were making memories!  :P  I had to get a nasty pic of us DRENCHED in the back seat!

Brunch & Shopping

Wednesday we got up & went to a place called Billy Gail's for brunch.  It was an old antique place that had a restaurant!  I got a grill cheese and tomato basil soup (I'm on a kick!) because I'm not much of a big breakfast person.  Punkin' was pretty wild the entire time, which automatically meant I would not even THINK about taking a single picture.

On our way out the door, the sweet old ladies that worked there told us that Ryder could pick any toy he wanted out of SO many different baskets!  I wanted him to pick a lil TY happy meal beanie baby that was a giraffe, but I let HIM pick what he wanted.  He got this ugly green alien/monster looking thing.  HA!  But it's whatever HE wanted...not MOMMY!  

Round two on the rides at the mall!  This time it was Bob the Builder!  He didn't know what to think at first, but he eventually LOVED it and even started driving with the stirring wheel!   

These are all the pics I got that day.  I am still a little upset about it.  Ryder went back to the condo with G & JT while me and mom did a little shopping on our own.  We all met up later at the Landing and had Joe's Crab Shack.  I love me some crab legs!  It was all just so good, and made me feel like we were at the beach!  We shopped around there a little bit more, got some Orange Leaf fro yo and called it a night!

Pool Day!

Today was a chill day.  Punkin' woke me up bright and early & we ate some breakfast & I made some coffee!  We got our suits on, blew up the floaty, got our towels, got lil Punkin' all sunscreened up, and headed out the door!

JT woke up as we were heading out the door & decided to go with us.  It was so funny because here we are...boy, girl & baby.  JT carrying Ryder I might add.  JT said, "Everybody's gonna think I'm his dad..."  Sho*nuff...  JT had Ryder in the deep end & a guy asked, "How olds your baby?"  Haha!  We should have just played it off...but we didn't!

I brought Punkin' back to take a nap and I headed out to lay out!  He woke up around 1:30 when I came back to the condo and that child did not go back to bed till 10 o'clock.  Oh.EM.GEE.  He was so tired he could barely walk straight all night long...& he just fought it & fought it & fought it!  I finally got the poor baby down!  Maybe he'll sleep in! 

He got these out of his bag and pulled them out.  ONE.BY.ONE.  That child is too funny!  He also put his finger UP my nose earlier today...he loved it.  He's crazy!  :P  But in a good way!  He is always making us LAUGH!

Shopping Day & Lamberts!

First day of vacation we went shopping just a little bit.  I got Punkin' some fall clothes.  He is growing out of everything!!  It's hard to decide what size he is going to be during the winter months and I just hit a little freak out mode in the stores!  12 months look like they'll be way too small, and 18 months look HUUUUGE!  I just had to go with what it looked like, not the size on the tag!  I guess that's what I should always do...

We saw this Richard Scary apple "ride" outside & wondered how Ryder would like it.  He.Loved.It!  Very well worth 75 cents!  If we go back...I'll have to let him do it again!

Yes...this is my son "cheesin' it"  HAHA!  Where he got that from I do not know!

We got to Lambert's Cafe around 3 o'clock to put our name on the waiting list.  We thought it wouldn't be THAT bad at 3...but it was an HOUR wait.  CRAZY huh!?  Lambert's Cafe is home of the "throwed rolls".  It is such a fun and different place to eat!

In between our wait, we went to an antique mall behind the restaurant and I picked up a few goodies for a STEAL for the new house!  It reminded me of why I have grown to love antiquing!  

Mom & dad...(dad had okra in his mouth!)

Me with the boys on the other side of the table...JT & Garrett (Uncle J & Uncle G)

Ryder wasn't too sure what to think about all the craziness..but he did great!  He LOOOVED their rolls...of course!  The child loves bread and could live off of it for a week!  He gets that from my side of the family!

They have HUGE mugs that you drink out of, and they go around with huge buckets full of things such as fried okra, macaroni & tomato, fried potatoes, molasses for your rolls...and of course the rolls to count as your appetizers!  It's just so different...and so much FUN!

Look at those biggo' PLATES!  More like a PAN!  Ha!  

We were tired puppies by the time we got home.  I put Ryder man down and went swimming with JT & Garrett till around 11 or so.  I was so ready to crawl into my bed when I got back!