18 already?

Yes, our little one has hit the bit 18. Okay, so he's not quite legal, but as rapidly as he's growing he might as well be! Today Jack is officially 18 months old. Crazy, right? We are certainly enjoying his daily discoveries and his fondness for playing chase, throwing ball, reading books, brushing teeth and many other activities. A little less enjoyable are his bouts with dangerous independence or blatant defiance, but I hear those come with the territory.

Halfway through my second year of motherhood, and it's not exactly what I thought it would be...it's better!

Whew...it's over!

Yes, the inaugural Kitchens that Cook is officially over. Could you hear my deep sigh of relief on Saturday around 6:30? I would have liked to have seen a little more traffic, but for the first time holding the event and the fact that it was a holiday weekend, we were not disappointed. I don't know the final numbers, but we raised about $5,000. Josh enjoyed cooking & filming with Kathy. We heard lots of positive feedback, and we're hoping it can become an annual event.

I was thankful to have my mom come up and watch Jack for us most of the day on Saturday. Dad was able to join us for dinner. He brought Jack a harmonica, which he enjoyed playing. After cleaning up the depot, putting in an appearance at the after-party, I was ready to crash...but managed to stumble into El Campesino with the rest of the family for dinner.

Sunday morning we packed up the cooler and headed to Atlanta for the Braves game with the Walshs, who live in Charleston. Mike went to med school with Josh, and he and his wife were in Atlanta for a wedding. Since this week is Mike's 30th, we met them at the Varsity for lunch and joined them at the ballpark. I just knew our day would be spoiled by rain, but it was a great day! We actually took Jack to one of the faux-Varsity locations before one of the Thrashers games last year, but this was his first trip to one of the official greasy Vs! He was a big fan of the frosted orange, but who wouldn't be?? The big crowd and loud "what'll ya haves" seemed to intimidate him a bit at first, but he settled in quick and enjoyed a naked dog and his first FO.

Liz bought a big group of seats together and we actually ended up being in the shade and having a great view of the field. Because of the steep seats, Jack couldn't really walk around though. He grew a little restless a few times, but managed to make it through the whole game with the help of frequent paci breaks, a giant chocolate chip cookie, dancing to the loud music, peanuts and of course...a coke!



Today we joined some friends for a Memorial Day cookout with ribs and all the fixings. I'm having trouble keeping straight what day it is since Josh was home today and we missed church yesterday. Anyway, it has been a busy, long weekend, and I'm so thankful that the rain showers seemed to cooperate with our schedule.

If you are what you eat...

...then Jack has been many new things this past week or so! Yes, despite the temporary hiatus from most things food our little one is beginning to pick up some steam. He's always enjoyed some of the basics: turkey, chicken, cheese & fruits, but other than those he wasn't very adventurous and stuck mostly to his chocolate milk and diluted juice. We're glad to see him exploring alternate food groups!?!

1. Brownies and Ice cream...this is a food group, right? Apparently best shared with the ones you love, Jack loved every minute of this dessert especially eating it with a straw as a fork.



2. All things spicy. Jack enjoyed some jambalaya last Thursday and on Friday showed his extreme fondness for the salsa at El Campesino.



3. Coke Zero...through a straw, in a big cup...however he can get it! This little guy loves coke. It's terrible...we're terrible, I know.

I know these are all great nutritional choices. Seriously though, he has started eating a few more things and eating better portions of his standard favorites, so we'll continue to reward him with ice cream and coke...ha, ha, ha!

As promised...

You Spin Me Right Round

You hear people say that kids learn something new everyday, but I rarely notice the day that Jack figures something out. Usually, I just up and realize that he's been doing something for a couple of weeks. Well, this afternoon while I was preparing dinner I spotted Jack spinning around in circles. He just kept twirling and twirling until he would get dizzy, stumble and usually fall. So silly! I'll try to post some video soon!

Last Wednesday, I talked Josh into leaving choir practice a little early so he could cut Jack's hair. It was getting so shaggy, and we rarely have a night at home any more with Josh's rehearsal schedule for State Road 47. The trim was much needed and now Jack can actually see again! Here are the before & afters!

Anyone else think this kid could use a haircut?








Hey, I can finally see again! I had forgotten all about this toy!








Thursday evening we attended the End-of-the-Year program for Jack's preschool (which is at our church). Jack goes to play with his friends on Tuesdays and Thursdays for a few hours. It is a great time for me to get caught up on the projects I've been doing lately. This week is the last week of school though, but Saturday is also the big Kitchens That Cook Fundraiser. Hopefully, my life will feel less chaotic when that event gets pulled off! Anyway, since the kids in Jack's class are so young they showed a slideshow of some of the things they did this year and then they pushed them into the sanctuary in the bye-bye buggy (a six seater stroller). It was sort of like a parade. They played "Jesus Loves Me," and Jack bopped his head back in forth all the way down the aisles. He sure loves music. Later that night I joined some friends to view the season finale of Grey's Anatomy and celebrate Andrea's 30th birthday! Glad I'm not that old. :)

Friday & Saturday were filled with birthday preparations for the small gathering we had to surprise Andrea on Saturday. Josh's mom and dad decided to make an appearance in town on Saturday. They joined us for the Mountain Laurel Parade in Clarkesville. As you can tell from this pic, Jack was mesmerized by the parade. He did actually bounce around when the Band of Blue came by. About 20 minutes after the parade ended the rain started coming down pretty hard, so we headed home. The skies cleared in time for the party. Jack got a good nap and stayed home to play with Grandmommy & Grandaddy. After the party, we returned home to find Jack enjoying himself. We all went out for a bite to eat before they had to head back home. It was a good weekend. Hope this Saturday's weather is cooperative as well!

On the Air

Yesterday, Josh, Jack and I had the priviledge of visiting with Kathy Nicholson of Southern Hospitality. As I mentioned in a previous post, Josh will be cooking with Kathy as part of our Kitchens That Cook fundraiser next Saturday. (That's right...it's only 9 days away! Still need tickets? Let me know!) Kathy asked us to come out to WRAF at Toccoa Falls College and record a segment to air on Sunday about the event.

Since Tuesdays are Josh's afternoon off and we barely saw each other yesterday, he hated for us to not spend the day together. So, Jack joined us in the studio. He was was pretty cooperative for the most part...especially considering he was in the midst of skipping a much-needed afternoon nap! He loved it when Kathy let him control the sound board.

After the interview we took a trip down to the falls. The weather was perfect. The short walk to the falls is in the shade and there is a cool breeze coming off the water. What a beautiful place! Thanks for being so good to us, Kathy! We're looking forward to lots of fun next weekend!

Thrill Junkie in the Making

I'm not sure if you are familiar with Johnny Knoxville, but basically he does (along with his friends) insanely un-safe and all-around ridiculous stunts, activities and the like all for the sake of laughs. Well, Jack may have a future in that arena. Take a look at our thrill junkie in the making.

Pete & Repeat

You probably remember that silly joke about Pete & Repeat sitting on a fence. If you don't I'll have to share it with you some time. Repeat is becoming quite the trend around our house. Jack is quite the chatter box, trying to repeat the things you say. I've been meaning to update you all on the things he says these days. So, here's a list in no particular order (although I'm sure I left some out!)


dada - Daddy (He says this a lot. When we walk into Josh's office, when we pull in the driveway, when I bring him downstairs from waking up)

ma - Mama (He says this very little, usually when he sees a picture of me, sometimes when Josh prods him)

no - No (go figure, right? He always says this by drawing out the n and kind of sing songy. Usually, it's because he doesn't like that you won't let him do something he wants to do.)

no - milk (not to be confused with the "nnnnnno!" This is said first thing in the morning and other times when he sees a sippy cup. It started out more like "nik," but somehow is basically a "no."


peese - please (Jack has been signing please for a while now, but we finally taught him how to say it a few weeks ago. Now, he says it all the time. Whenever he wants something, especially if he thinks you don't want him to have it.)


cheese - cheese (spoken only when actually eating his cheese, which is less frequently these days...he's on a milk kick!)


ee-oos - cheerios (Jack loves Honeynut Cheerios)

coo-coo-kee - cookie (this is really cute and kind of gurgly sounding)

wa-wa - water (usually reserved for his bathtime conversations, but he can easily reach the knobs on the tub in our bathroom and loves to turn on the "wa-wa")

fis - fish (used primarily when asking for goldfish or seeing a picture or tank of fish)

f-wow-wa - flower (everything that even closely resembles a flower and even a few things that don't get labeled this, including all houseplants, dead leaves spotted on the ground, etc.)

Dew-drew - Andrew (his best buddy at church)

Say-c - Stacie (one of my best friends from Athens, he just started saying this clearly Monday evening)

Pa-Pa - Pop (my mom calls my dad Pop to Jack and he started repeating it yesterday...I think short names help!)

ca - car (sometimes he points out cars)

Ca-ca - Carson (Jack's sweet gal pal from church)

woo-woo - woof-woof (if something looks like a dog, it says woof, woof...and apparently when you are 17 months old, everything looks like a dog!)

yeow - meow (anything that resembles a cat. Jack loves animals!)

ba-baa - ball (anything and everything round in nature is a ball. Some things are just ba, others are ba-baa. You really have to draw out the last syllabyl.)

bu-buh - bubble (not to be confused with ball, Jack loves for us to blow bubbles outside!)


ba-ble - apple (this sounds very similar to ball, but usually is said when pointing at an apple and to indicate "I want you to give me some of that apple!")

I'll add more as I think of them.

Happy Birthday, Big Mama...Oops! I mean grandma to be named.

Everyone keeps asking my mom what she is going to be called by Jack. She always says the same thing, "I don't know whatever he picks. I just don't want to be Big Mama." Anyway, Saturday was my mom's birthday. We were able to spend some time together last weekend during the bike races, but she had no idea that Jack & I planned to surprise her on Sunday.

Josh was working a day shift in the ER, so Jack and I headed down to Athens and showed up at my parent's church. I checked with my dad to make sure I wasn't busting up any important plans. They ended up skipping the Senior Adult luncheon (which my mom only qualified for b/c she's married to an old guy, I mean an older gentleman). I don't think they were too disappointed to dine with me and Jack instead.

Unfortunately, I totally flaked and didn't take any pictures. So, sorry mom...but hope you had a great birthday!

Happy Birthday, Aunt Kristy

Saturday afternoon we headed to Atlanta to celebrate Kristy's birthday (Josh's sister). She lives in Rome, near Josh's parents. So, the three of them along with our nephew Sean met us at Maggiano's at Perimeter. It wasn't hard to convince everyone that we should dine family style, but it was challenging to narrow our selections. But, when faced with choosing or going hungry we managed to select some pretty incredible dishes. The chicken & spinach manicotti was my favorite, and I could have eaten the whole dish of creme brulee by myself (in fact I almost did!) Sean had a meatball the size of his head, then nibbled on a second meatsicle style (see picture).

It was great to spend time with everyone and to surprise Kristy with her birthday gift. She loves Josh's Keurig one-cup coffee brewer, and now she's pretty much loving her OWN Keurig one-cup coffee brewer. She was so excited. Although he was a little out of sorts, Jack enjoyed goofing around with Grandaddy (see picture).

These two boys seem to spread a lot of laughter and smiles everywhere they go.

Summer time is...

...not technically here, but there are signs all over the place. Despite the little bit cooler weather and rain we've had the past couple of days, it has been quite warm around here. Several days last week were in the upper 80s. We spent a lot of time outside. So, even though it's not technically here, summer time is...



the smell of fresh cut grass and your first trip on the riding lawnmower.



the cool taste of popsicles and late-night trips to Sonic (just because you can).



the splendor of a slide that's just your size!

Neglected?

Feeling neglected? I was shocked to find that I had not posted since April 20! Wow! I've been super busy, and the blog is usually one of the first things to suffer, then laundry, and the kitchen sink...the list goes on. Yes, I realized it was bad, when my father-in-law says to me, "You're never on Facebook anymore."

So, what have I been so busy with? Well, a few main things have been occupying my free time (which believe it or not...stay-at-home moms/homemakers/full-time moms do not just have an abundance of. Maybe I'll post more on that some other time.) First, I'm serving on the hospital foundation board and placed in charge of a fundraiser that involves a tour of kitchens in one of our local communities. I helped with a similar event when we lived in South Carolina. Since the event has never been done before in our community, it is a lot of work. And, since I don't have as many contacts as someone who has lived her much longer...it is tough to get all the resources/help you need. We're about 3 weeks away from our event, and I'm feeling the crunch. We need more sponsors and need to sell more tickets. If you're interested in either, let me know! :) Topping it off, Josh has agreed to cook with one of our demonstrators, Kathy Nicholson who has her own cooking show. So, we've been busy perfecting his recipes...which hasn't been all bad because it involves eating! (Also, our logo is not orange...but blogger keeps turning it orange and I refuse to deal with it!)

Additionally, our church is planning a musical for July, which as you may guess involves Josh acting/singing. Guess who was tapped to design tickets, posters, programs, etc? We've lived here not quite 2 years, and I'm amazed at how quickly everyone learns about your background/prior work experience. And, since you don't have a paying job, you must have all the time in the world, right? Don't get me wrong, I enjoy writing, designing and the others, but not when all the projects come at once. I also enjoy having an outlet and using my creative skills, but it can also be very exhausting when your only designated work time has been relegated to (if you're lucky) a couple hours of your little one's nap and Monday evenings after his bedtime. (Last week I stayed up till 2 a.m.) I hate to sound like I'm complaining, but I do feel the need to get some of this off my chest, so sorry you're being forced to read it! (I promise to promptly follow this entry with a Jack-heavy & photo-heavy post!)

The last item that I've been working on is just my MOPS stuff in general. Our last couple of meetings have required a good bit of set-up, clean up, preparation and the like. Our final meeting is this week, and I needed to prepare a DVD of our year-in-review. It sounds easy enough, but I'm quite the perfectionist when it comes to these videos. You probably won't be able to tell, but I spend a great deal of time making it zoom in on the photos or scroll an image one side to the other. I'm pretty happy with the way it turned out. We're also gearing up to begin our planning for next year. I've already designed Save the Dates cards for our moms. Fortunately, we scaled back our summer event schedule. Hopefully, we'll get a better turnout with fewer and less frequent events.

Well, that's what has been keeping me busy. Hate to have bored you. Next post will fill you in on what we've managed to squeeze in during non-nap/non-Monday nights!