To Crawl or Not?
This is what Noah currently thinks of the notion of crawling.
Since Ezra has been crawling for weeks, I thought we would have a little fun with Noah’s lack of desire to crawl. Our first ever poll!
[polldaddy poll=2082021]
Cooler weather shocks new mom!
Fall has finally arrived in Arizona and the mornings and evenings are a bit cool, not too bad, but enough I should put some pants on my kids.
Long sleeve shirts, check! Sweat shirts, check! Jackets, check! Ummm, pants not so much.
We do own two pairs (each) in 12 months, and after much digging I did find one pair of 6-9 months, of course, after I had dressed them in pajama pants. The one pair I found are super cute and totally appropriate for going out in, thank goodness, but we do need to get the boys some more pants so they don’t run around looking like this anymore:
Exhibit A
Matt put Noah in these yesterday after he realized he was cold. Now these are 6-9 months the correct size, but we are not sure if they are supposed to be pants (on a super short baby) or shorts (on a super tall baby) or manpris as we like to call them.
Exhibit B
Today’s pajama pants, size 3-6 months, a little short and Noah’s are kinda girly.
I promise I love my kids!
Pesto Chicken and Sweet Potatoes
I recently discovered this blog and was thrilled. I am learning to love my slow cooker more and more every week. It allows me to put meals together during nap-time and it doesn’t heat up the kitchen. When I saw this recipe I had to try it. I love sweet potatoes and pesto! I had never thought of layering a meal in the crock pot and was super excited to try it. Hey its the little things people!
The chicken going in, I had some parmesan left over from another recipe so I added that instead of all mozzarella. Also, I didn’t make her pesto since I still had some in the freezer from last year’s bumper basil crop.
The sweet potatoes! YUM!
The finished product.
Overall I loved this recipe and will do it again. Unfortunately the chicken came out a little dry. This is my fault, I know my crock pot is a rock star and cooks a little faster than most but I still used the suggested times, and I used small chicken breasts not the breast halves or thighs that she suggest.
Random Tip: When chicken comes out dry and I know neither of us will eat the leftovers as is, I shred it up toss it with some lite mayo, little mustard, little lemon juice, cayenne pepper (if I am feeling spicy), and some grapes and/or apples chopped up. This makes a yummy chicken salad sandwich.
Sharing & General Cuteness
I caught the boys sharing these Mr. Potato Head lips the other day. They would take it from each other and then giggle, oh how I wish they would take that feature into toddlerhood and then childhood.
His eyebrows always make me giggle!
Nothing like chewing on stuff together.
Oh the camera!
Enjoying the Mr. Potato Head lips
Look Mom!
I can stand up in my crib!
He is also already into the sagging look. Oh brother!
Exciting Times
When daddy comes home there is a lot of excitement in the house. I wish I would have grabbed the camera as soon as he came in, but here is a video of the tail end of their excitement:
Hooray Daddy is Home! from Stephanie Adams on Vimeo.
Wordless Wednesday – 9.30.09
Rice Box Fun
Sometime during the never ending heat of the summer I remembered an idea I had read online forever ago, an indoor rice box. This idea was to get through the long, cold winter. Since we don’t have those I thought I could use the idea to get through the long, ridiculously hot summer. Rice is better than sand for at least two reason, eating it not so bad and easier to clean up. Yes the boys still make a giant mess and it goes every where, but not nearly as bad as sand would. All you need is a tote with a lid, under the bed sizes work great, and rice. I bought one of the giant bags from Sam’s Club. The boys like making an mess and it gives them something different to do.
They have lots of options:
eating the rice box toys,
playing with the rice in or out of the box,
and swimming in the rice,
not pictured, splashing in the rice, lots of fun for the boys and very messy!
Splish-Splash
Someone finally found the dog water yesterday. I knew it was going to happen eventually but was hoping I still had a while.
The dogs were just a little concerned and kept their distance.
What are these new words I am hearing, “no and don’t?”
What to do with the dog water? Pick it up and just put it back down during nap-times? Matt said I should just keep an eye on him, duh I hadn’t thought of that (insert rolling eyes). Sometimes I have another baby that needs something and can’t keep Ezra from crawling away. He’s is getting pretty fast and loves exploring the house. I don’t want to have to cage him every time I have to walk away. I am more of a “free-range” baby kind of person. So to all the experienced pet owners/parents out there, what did you do with your dog water? There isn’t a spot in the house that the dogs can get to that the babies can’t. For now I will just be picking up the water when I am home alone.
Tsegay and Almaz
The CHI in-country representative for Ethiopia was able to come visit Arizona with his wife. They did a wonderful job caring for our little guys in Ethiopia, staying with Ezra at the hospital, worrying about them, making sure they received the best care possible. We absolute adore Tsegay and his wife Almaz and were so glad they were able to see the boys again. We went to a gathering last night of other CHI families and had a great time meeting new families and seeing old friends. We only took two pictures!
Noah just stared at Almaz. I have no idea what Ezra is distracted by in the pictures, but he did give them plenty of smiles.
Crock-Pot Enchiladas
This is loosely adapted from a chicken enchilada recipe that I had. I left out several ingredients, including the chicken, a jalapeno, and olives, so if you want to add those in feel free, but Matt and I like it just the way I made it, easy and simple.
4-6 – 10″ tortillas, depending on the size and shape of your crock
2 – 16 ounce cans of refried beans, I used the black beans, fat free and yummy
1 – 16 ounce can of enchilada sauce, I used red, but I am sure green would work too
4 ounces of cheese, I used cheddar, you could use more if you really like cheese, but I was trying to not add too much fat
8 ounces of sour cream, use more or less your choice
Spray crock-pot with non-stick oil, put down a layer of tortillas, spread on one can of refried beans, then add some cheese and sour cream. Another layer of tortillas, the second can of beans, cheese and sour cream. Top it with a last layer of tortillas, sour cream if you need want more, the entire can of enchilada sauce and then sprinkle with cheese. I cooked it for 2 hours on low, 2.5 would probably be better as I did find one cool sour cream glob. 🙂 You could probably do 1.5 on high if you needed it faster.
I easily assembled this during afternoon nap and it was delicious and meat free!
Wordless Wednesday – 9.23.09
My little brother is officially a fire fighter
Last night I went to Jason’s swearing in as a fire fighter for Ak-Chin. It was a nice night and I am very proud of him.
The happy new fire fighter and his family
Proud dad
Mom and son
Bagpipers leading in the Color Guard
Abby enjoying the bagpipes
Getting sworn in
Getting pinned