Mommy's Workout

The morning started out a bit stressful when I when I opened the door to the dog's room and was immediately greeted by a smell that make it clear she had gone #2 in the night...she's never done that in her crate before but there is a first time for everything. =/

So the house and dog smelled AWFUL.

Brett cleaned the crate and I worked on defunking the house, keeping the dog outside, and keeping the baby off the floors.

Sahara stayed outside until I was able to get her to the groomers at 10AM. While there I got some awesome news, she would probably have to stay there for 3 hours! haha What a nice break.

I rushed home, put the baby down for a nap and got to work.

I picked up everything, thoroughly vacuumed and then thoroughly mopped with Lysol. I was able to completely clean and disinfect our downstairs floors in one hour and the baby even napped the whole time!

I worked up a sweat and accomplished something. I think that counts as a satisfying workout.

And as a bonus, the baby slept long enough for me to shower too!

Ahh, I'm so glad the morning was able to turn around so quickly.

Weening

This month I started weening Barker from breastfeeding.

The whole thing is bitter-sweet.

It is sad to see how fast he has grown. (I've been scrapbooking his first year so I'm constantly looking at pictures of him right now) This time a year ago I was ready to go into labor any day and now he's a week away from turning one!

But I'm focusing on the positives.

1. He is more independent!
2. I'm not the only person that can feed him. (Yay, I could leave him with a sitter for longer than 4 hours!)
3. He is able to eat most of the things I also eat now so preparing dinner isn't as hard. (And he insists on sharing anyway)
4. My wardrobe is no longer limited to items I can nurse in. (Yay! I can wear dresses again!)

On Saturday I ran out of my freezer stash of breast milk so he started drinking whole cow's milk. He was a little confused the first time, but he really hasn't had any trouble making the switch. I'm so proud of him.

#day81 (late, oops!) Barker starting to drink whole, cow's milk makes me happy! #growingsofast #100happydays

A photo posted by sharalynnh (@sharalynnh) on Oct 10, 2014 at 11:49am PDT

I was very gradual with the weening, dropping one feeding a week. This is our last week and I am nursing him once a day in the early morning.

I've already started cleaning out my closet to pack away all of my nursing tanks etc. While I was at it I did my semi-annual clothing purge as well where I basically get rid of anything I no longer wear, doesn't excite me, or I've replaced with an updated version.

I feel kind of like a new chapter is beginning now that Barker is one. It's sad to say goodbye to baby Barker, but this new stage of independence and play is amazing and exciting.

Besides, there will be other babies in no time and I'll be rearranging my wardrobe again.

Delicious Dish for Fall!

I feel like I've been really busy lately, but here is what took up my Tuesday afternoon...

A New Recipe I found on Pinterest!

Tortellini is one of my favorite foods so I couldn't resist trying this, and wow it has a lot of vegetables! I pureed some for Barker the next day and he likes it too. =)

For the full recipe click here.

These are the basic steps:

Cut up and cook some chicken. (I actually just chopped up the chicken we had for dinner the night before.)

Chop up some peppers and butternut squash, then saute. (I replaced the sweet potato with squash because of Barker's sweet potato sensitivity; and left out the mushrooms because mushrooms are "ew")

Mix some chicken stock, milk, garlic salt, pepper, flour and cream of chicken to create the sauce.

Mix the cooked tortellini, veggies, chicken, sauce and add a can of peas and a can of corn. Top with Parmesan and bake.

Plate and enjoy!

It's pretty good! Barker likes it a lot, but he likes anything Mommy is eating these days. ;)

Next time, I'm thinking I'll leave out the peas (I'm not a big sweet pea fan) and maybe add some cheese to the sauce? That will make it healthier right??

Overall, not a hard recipe, but chopping everything takes time. Although it probably wouldn't have taken me as long if I wasn't also keeping an eye on an almost-1-year-old that discovered how to climb the stairs as I was cooking...

Puppy's Midnight Party

Our punk little girl decided to have a party last night while the rest of us were sleeping up stairs.

She managed to bust out of her crate and nose open the sliding door to her room.

Then she ate anything she could get to including, candy wrappers, rolls that were in their packaging on the counter, a couple of bell peppers; and some brown sugar.

Then she relieved herself in the dinning room AND on the rug in the living room.

Needless to say I was not too thrilled to come downstairs and discover the mess this morning.

I then had to wake up Brett so he could watch Barker while I deep cleaned the downstairs. Good thing I'm most productive in the mornings!

I will say though, it is nice having everything picked up, and the floors are shiny and clean now.

*sigh*

Fall Festivities

On Saturday we decided to take advantage of the beautiful weather we've had lately and go on a fall adventure! Living in FL means missing out on all the fun fall festivals, pumpkin patches and orchards that we would be visiting up north, but we do have our own versions.

In the morning we visited the Fall Wildflower Festival at the Brooker Creek Preserve.
It was a fun, FREE outing for the little guy.

We saw many, many butterflies and even attempted to feed some.

Barker pretended to be a caterpillar.

We walked along paths and took in some nature.

We felts different animal pelts.

Discovered some awesome rocking chairs.

Checked out kid friendly wildlife displays.

Learned about bees and sampled some local honey. (Barker did not get to sample. ;))

Then we decided it was time to pumpkin shop. We went to a local church's pumpkin set up. Not quite like going to a farm or orchard up north, but still fun for our little guy.

There were plenty of pumpkins that were just the right size.

He picked one! Apparently it was yummy.

And of course we needed a family picture at the "pumpkin patch."

Overall, a very fun and festive Saturday in October. =)

Felt Shapes

In May I flew with Barker by myself, so, I got some ideas from other moms and put together "travel" toys. One idea was to get felt from the dollar store and create felt shapes on a ribbon that would stay together and not easily fall onto the ground.

Barker liked it at the time, but he was more interested in chewing on the ribbon.

This week I found the discarded ribbon and shapes in my car so I went ahead and washed them.

When I was folding laundry yesterday, Barker discovered the shapes! (They had come off the ribbon.)

The first thing he did was crawl over to the dog to show them to her. (She wasn't that impressed.)

Barker has since then decided they are the coolest thing ever. He takes them wherever he goes to play. When he was pulling out pots and pans in the kitchen, he used them to scrub the pans.

He also liked trying to hold them all at the same time while climbing up a door. Then he would forget to hold on to the door and he'd be standing on his own! (for about 5 seconds at a time)

This morning, he still takes them everywhere. Even when he opens the door to follow me outside.

It's pretty cute. I may have to make some more...

Keeping Busy -- Little Updates

Brett's travel is picking back up again this month. Spring and Fall tend to be full of back to back trips for him. Not cool, but I have to believe it wont be like this forever... the worst is when his travel happens on a weekend as well. (As it did last weekend)

This keeps me pretty busy though. I've been knitting and learning how to embroider on knitting.

A work in progress

Cleaning, cleaning, cleaning.

Catching up on laundry.

Decorating for fall. (fairly minimal this year)

Planning Barker's first bday party! (Barker Bear at the Beach Theme!)

Visiting with friends.

Going to church.

Oh yeah, and watching Barker discover new talents and go on adventures.

The dog likes to play too.

So that is what we're up to these days.

Oh and did I mention Brett's plane was struck by lightning this morning???!!! Noooot cool. I am SO glad God is in control and kept him safe.

Now, back to the kiddos and the house...

Feel Free to share what you are up to this week and click below!

Baby and Puppy

Barker and Sahara have an interesting relationship right now.

Barker loves Sahara and because he is currently in a sharing stage (sweet when he shares his snacks with you, a little frustrating when he insists that you share your lunch with him) he wants to share with Sahara.

When he has his cereal snack in the middle of the day, I let him eat it out of a take-and-toss bowl on the floor with his water sippy next to him. He's pretty good about eating it there and Sahara sits close by, hoping he'll accidentally drop one on the floor and forget about it.

This week, however, he has decided to share with Sahara. It is so sweet to watch him hold out a piece of cereal right in front of her nose, but it definitely makes me nervous. I always have to stop him. And thank God Sahara is great with him. She hasn't even tried to lick his hand. But if he drops it, she's going to eat it. ;)

This morning Barker got to Sahara at her water bowl and before I could pick him up, he started petting her head! It was very sweet and I was surprised he didn't go straight for the water to splash. Sahara didn't even seem to mind. But, dogs are supposed to be territorial with their food, so I had to pull Barker away.

All this shows me that they are right when they say malamutes are great with kids. I think it has to do with their pack mentality. She has never had a problem sharing her food bowl and water.

What upsets Sahara most about Barker these days is when I help him practice walking. She does NOT think he should be walking upright. Haha She gets pretty feisty about it--jumping around and growling. I wonder if she thinks he is a type of dog and that isn't natural?

I guess she'll have to get used to it pretty soon though...

How are your dogs with your kiddos? Feel free to share in the comments!!

And please click below. =)

8 Years Together

On October 10, 2006 I agreed to "give him a chance" and went on a date with Brett.

 I was an 18yr old freshman and he was a 21yr old senior and RA on the floor above mine in DeHority at Ball State.

I can't believe how much we've done in the past 8 years, but here are some highlights. =)

2006: We met in August and started dating in October!

At the Cincinnati Zoo Festival of Lights -- December 2006

2007: Brett graduated from Ball State in May, then started his Masters program in August.

Brett's Graduation -- Spring 2007

2008: Brett graduated with his masters degree and moved to Raleigh, NC in July. He proposed and I accepted in November.

Our Engagement in Newport, KY. Complete with carriage ride -- November 7, 2008

2009: Brett moved to Clearwater, FL in June. I graduated from Ball State in December.

My graduation -- Fall 2009

2010: We were married January 30, 2010! I moved and joined Brett in Clearwater.

Our Wedding -- January 30, 2010

2011: We traveled a LOT. Vegas, Vail, Madrid, Venice, Dubrovnik, Sicily, Rome, Florence, Barcelona, New York.

Times Square -- October 2011

2012: We adopted our little girl!

Sahara joins the family -- July 2012

2013: Found out I was pregnant in February, Barker officially arrived November 4, 2013!

Barker's First Christmas -- December 2013

2014: Everything is new with a baby.

Fountain Square, Cincinnati for my parents 30th Wedding Anniversary -- September 2014

I can't wait to see what adventures these next years hold! I am one blessed girl.


As an anniversary gift, just click below! ;)