Bessie the Milk Cow has hung up her udders

Yep, you read the header correctly....hung up the udders!!! For my birthday, Jack gave me the gift of freedom. He decided that he had enough of breastfeeding and weaned himself! WAHOO!!!! I am loving this. My goal was to breastfeed for 4 months. Well, we did it. However, we are both moving on to greener pastures and the happy world of formula!!

Things I will like about not breastfeeding....
1. Staying dressed ALL day long
2. Sleeping on my stomach
3. Leaving him with Jay for more than 2 hours
4. Being able to feed him where ever we are without having to go find a private place

The list goes on and on :) So happy!!!!

He had his 4 month check up on Friday. He weighs a whopping 12 lb. 14 oz. (10th percentile, poor little runt) and is 26 inches long (90th percentile!!). We also started him on rice cereal today. He loved it and totally gets the concept of the spoon :) Child genius I tell ya. Sorry for the commentary in the video below. I didn't know Jay was recording :)








Someone should have told Jack not to talk with food in his mouth. How rude.



Jack tried out the Bumbo. He was less than impressed. Good thing I borrowed this from my sister and didn't actually buy it . The face says it all :)

Twenty what?

That's right 26 is how old I turned this week. I am now closer to 30 than to 20. That's pretty depressing. I did have a fairly productive year (i.e. baby, moving, no speeding tickets) but I do have quite a bit on my "Things to do before I turn 30" list to complete. If anyone can help with the following....please let me know. I am in a race against time.

Things to do Before I Turn 30.....
1. Learn Portuguese
2. Go to the Kentucky Derby
3. Go shopping in NYC, London, Rome and Paris (shopping also includes seeing all the sights)
4. Go on an African Safari
5. Learn to play the Banjo
6. Learn to make a souffle
7. Hang out with someone famous for a day (I'm talking A-list celebrity...none of this Ali Lohan business)
8. Learn to surf
9. Do a flip on the wakeboard
10. Learn to scuba dive
11. Invent a special sauce (one that might even surpass Ranch dressing)



As for good Jay news, he had a paint job this past week up in Keystone. He took the scenic way and it is looking really cold up there! Now for the bad news....Jay fell off his ladder that was also on top of his scaffold. He fell quite a ways. Luckily I'm not a widow and luckily the worst that happened was the gash on his leg below. Remind anyone of the other near death experience when he separated his shoulder 4 days before our wedding? Maybe I should look into a Kevlar Batman suit to keep him safe. Also, he would look pretty hot in it :)



I had another Martha moment. They come few and far between, so I thought I would share. My sister is having a baby girl in a few weeks and her shower was last night. I decided to make the little thing below for her nursery and some little hooks. The picture isn't great quality (at least that's what I'm blaming it on) but....Tadah!!


Just Jay and Jack looking way super cute, plus Jack wanted to show off his new camo pants. He is very proud of them. I actually think the child is quite vain.

I swear he is my child. I realize there is no resemblance, but I definitely pushed him out.

September Randomness (Is that even a word?)

September started off really great for us! We got to watch 3 boys from our ward while their parents went on a cruise. Twin 13 year olds and a 5 year old. Jay was in heaven! They played basketball, football, ping pong, watched movies and most importantly, took some trips down to the creek where they caught disgusting (to me at least) crawdads (see picture below). They walked down to the creek in mud boots and came back up with a bowl full of swamp creatures to show me. You can imagine my excitement I'm sure....but I put on a good show :)

Ethan, the 5 year old couldn't remember my name so he asked if he could just call me Grandma. I thought it would be funny to see peoples faces when he did, so I agreed that Grandma would be fine. Haha!

Anyway, I caught a glimpse of what my life will be like in a few years watching Jay play all day with those boys. I am so excited for Jack to grow up and have such a fun dad :) I'm not sure who misses who more, the boys or Jay, but they have already set up some play dates. I'm glad Jay is making friends here. Haha! :)




On another note, college football has started! Wahoo!!! I am proud to say that Oklahoma has started off with a bang....pretty much annihilating everyone they have played. I got Jack geared up for the first game of the season. Jay told me that Jack isn't allowed to watch TV until he is 2 as he is convinced it will slow his learning. Quite frankly I didn't have much choice. Jack won't take his eyes off the TV if it is on. He is totally into it :)




This is a picture of Jack's balancing act. He is pretty stinkin' good at it, actually. He just sits in Jay's hand like it's nothing.....the kid can't sit up on the floor....but he can do this. Go figure.




As you will notice throughout the pictures, Jack has an infatuation with his hands. They are ALWAYS in his mouth. We tried so hard to push the binky just for this purpose, but he really prefers his hands. Oh well, I guess I will worry about it later. Hopefully I can fix the problem before Kindergarten :)




Most parents teach their children not to pick their noses. Well, not Jay. He tries to help him. Lovely....



Here are my boys all ready for church. Handsome, aren't they?

The little man and his baby mama :)

Happy Day!!!!!!!

Just thought I'd share the joy! Jack slept for 9 hours last night....straight....without one single peep!!!!!!!!!!!!! WAHOO!!!! I woke up around 4:30 this morning, looked at the clock and panicked. I flew out of bed so fast just to make sure he was still alive. Sure enough, fast asleep!! I have so much energy today I could run a marathon (well, that is probably pushing it.....I'm still pretty out of shape :) Anyway, let's hope he keeps doing this :)

iTunes Tag

My sister did this tag. I think it is pretty stinkin' funny :)

Ok, here are the rules:
1. Put your itunes/music player/cd player on shuffle.
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer.
3. YOU MUST WRITE THAT SONG NAME DOWN NO MATTER WHAT!!! NO CHEATING!
4. After you've answered all the questions, tag three other people.

IF SOMEONE SAYS "IS THIS OKAY" YOU SAY? Just for now - Imogen Heap
WHAT WOULD BEST DESCRIBE YOUR PERSONALITY? Electric Relaxation - Tribe Called Quest
WHAT DO YOU LIKE IN A GUY/GIRL? Disappear - INXS....apparently I like invisible men.
HOW DO YOU FEEL TODAY? Ain't No Other Man - Christina Aguilera
WHAT IS YOUR LIFE'S PURPOSE? Staying Alive - Wyclef Jean....very fitting!
WHAT IS YOUR MOTTO? Just Like Heaven - The Cure
WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR PARENTS? Colorblind - Counting Crows....well, maybe my dad
WHAT DO YOUR FRIENDS THINK OF YOU? Don't Cha - Pussycat Dolls
WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT FREQUENTLY? Bootylicious - Destiny's Child.....HAHA!!!
WHAT IS 2 + 2? Mr. Brightside - The Killers
WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR BEST FRIEND? Ball and Chain - Social Distortion.....Aren't you glad you are my best friend, Jay? :)
WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE PERSON YOU LOVE? Starry Eyed Surprise - Paul Oakenfold....Jay is my Starry Eyed Surprise
WHAT IS YOUR LIFE STORY? Counting the Days - Goldfinger
WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP? Vienna - The Fray...hmmmm
WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU SEE THE PERSON YOU LOVE? Wind It Up - Gwen Stefani.....Ha!
WHAT DO YOUR PARENTS THINK OF YOU? Waiting in Vain - Bob Marley ....Ha!
WHAT WILL YOU DANCE TO AT YOUR WEDDING? Not Enough Time - INXS....good choice :)
WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL? Gold Digger - Kayne West....YES!!!
WHAT IS YOUR HOBBY/INTEREST? Whip It - Devo...HAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!
WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST SECRET? Suicide Blonde - INXS.....don't worry, I'm not suicidal :)
WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR FRIENDS? Got To Give It Up - Marvin Gaye....HAHAHA!!!

I tag Jami and Katie B :)

Snickerdoodle Pie

I had a few requests for this recipe. I had some who thought it tasted great and others not so much. It tastes more like cake than pie, which is why I like it :) Butter, sugar and cinnamon...what's not to like???


Make a pie crust (or buy a refrigerated unbaked pie crust) and line the pie plate with the crust.

(Follow the directions carefully for the pie. For most of you this probably won't be a problem, but it took my amateur pie skills quite a while to do this :)

1 Tbsp raw sugar
1/2 plus 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon, divided
2 tsp. butter, melted (I used a little extra...by accident, but I think it made it better :)
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup butter
3 Tbsp water
2 Tbsp light-colored corn syrup
1/2 plus 1 tsp vanilla, divided
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. cream of tartar
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a bowl combine raw sugar and 1/2 tsp. cinnamon. Brush melted butter over crust. Sprinkle with 1 tsp. of cinnamon-sugar mixture. Set aside.
2. For syrup, in saucepan combine brown sugar, 1/4 cup butter, water, corn syrup and 1/4 tsp. cinnamon. Heat to boiling over medium heat, stirring to dissolve sugar. Boil gently 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in 1/2 tsp. vanilla. Set aside.
3. In mixing bowl beat 1/4 cup softened butter with electric mixer on medium speed for 30 seconds. Beat in granulated sugar, powdered sugar, baking powder, salt and cream of tartar until well combined. Beat in eggs and 1 tsp. vanilla. Gradually beat in milk until combined. Beat in flour. Spread evenly in crust lined pie plate.
4. Slowly pour syrup over filling in pie plate. Sprinkle with remaining cinnamon-sugar mixture. Cover edges of pie with foil.
5. Bake pie 25 minutes; carefully remove foil. Bake 20 minutes more or until top is puffed and golden brown, and a toothpick inserted near center comes out clean.

Voila!

Mullet Madness - Business in the front, party in the back!!!

Once I was driving through St. Louis and stopped for gas. As the man next to me filled up his old beater Volkswagen, I noticed that he had possibly the sweetest mullet ever. Just then a breeze came and blew the hair off his back revealing a shirt with no sleeves that said "Do not cross Slayer". Sadly, Jack doesn't have a sleeveless Slayer shirt, but he is sporting the mullet of the year. What to do?

1. Shave it off
2. Cut only part and make it into a rat tail
3. Hope the rest falls out
4. Leave it in all its glory

Only time will tell :)


From the front.......

From the side......

And here it is......

Here is the reason Jack will be in therapy most of his adult life..

Jack did get my huge eyes :) I'm glad I show up a little bit in him :)

I had a Martha Stewart day. This is my snickerdoodle pie. I pretty much ate the whole thing myself. So much for losing that baby weight, eh?