10 Months Old

Remington turned 10 months old yesterday. He is such a happy and healthy baby. We are very blessed.

A typical weekday for him starts off with nursing. Then he'll munch on some Cheerios while big brother eats breakfast. He and Southern will play while Mommy washes dishes or clothes. Then it's lunchtime. He will eat Honey 7-Grain bread or crackers while Mommy eats lunch. Then I'll usually feed him a jar or two of baby food. Shortly after lunch, it's naptime and time for another nursing session. When he wakes up, the boys will play some more while Mommy gets supper ready. Daddy gets home! We eat together as a family. Remington can eat the same supper as us when I make fish, pasta, steamed veggies, etc. After supper and some clean-up, we go upstairs to watch a movie together. After the movie, Daddy bathes the boys while Mommy showers. I will then nurse Remington once more and put him to bed.

All this gets changed around on those days that we go to the library (at least once a week), run errands, visit Daddy at work, etc.

Remington usually just takes it all in stride and is happy where ever he is (as long as Mommy's close by). He has gotten less easy to put in his car seat though. At this age, he wants nothing to do with it at first. He cries and struggles while I buckle him but soon quiets down when he's fully strapped.

He is now a whiz at going up and down the stairs. We have to keep a gate on the bottom, or he will go the whole way up by himself! We let him go up and down on his own when we are there to follow him.

Along with his two bottom teeth, he has one coming in at the top. As a result of this, he's had some pretty rough nights these past two weeks.

Good for a Chuckle

Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star

Southern singing his version of Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star

Spring Break 2012

Spring Break 2012 - Our trip to Brenham, TX

When we were driving home from our two-night vacation in College Station this past summer, we went through Brenham. I fell in love. It was such a cute little town, and there was so much to do. I begged Dustin to let us stay the night. (I always pack an extra set of clothes, so we had the supplies). While Dustin didn't exactly match my enthusiasm, (instead of turning around in search of the nearest hotel, he kept driving toward home) he did promise that we'd be back. "Fine," I had said, "then I'm planning a Spring Break trip to Brenham." And I did!

We drove up on Monday afternoon. I was driving so we took the windy, single-lane highway route through towns. It was shorter milage-wise than taking I-10, but it would have been about the same timewise if we could have gone close to the speed limit the whole time. It wasn't our lucky day though, as we got stuck behind multiple cars doing well under the speed limit (I'm talking 45 in a 65 mph zone). So by the time we got to Brenham, it was late.

We checked into the motel and headed out to find someplace to eat. I was starving, so we went for something close. Casa Ole`! I hadn't eaten in one of those since high school, so I enjoyed myself. Dustin was a little disappointed with his menu choice, but mine was good. After filling our bellies, we drove around the town for a bit. We came across a walking trail that was lit, so we stopped there. We put Remington in the stroller and took off. Southern and I raced a couple times, we made a loop, and then we were back in the car to head "home" for the night.

Southern was really tired after the big day, so he went off to sleep easily. Remington was more of a challenge. We ended up staying awake until around 1am. And since Southern had gotten off to sleep much earlier, he was ready to go bright and early that next morning. He was in our bed jumping around by 7:30am. We soon were all up and dressing to go to breakfast downstairs. It was really good - waffles, scrambled eggs, biscuits and gravy, sausage, yogurt, cereal, etc. So we all had our fill and then were off to explore Brenham.

Our first stop was the antique carousel. We loved it! It was only $1/person to ride for 5 minutes.

Southern decided he wanted a brown horse

Remington rode on one of the benches with Daddy

Then we hit a nearby playground.

Southern was having a lot of fun sliding and climbing

Remington also enjoyed himself - leaves are fun!

Then we moved to the downtown area. We window shopped and went in a few stores. The kids scored at The Book Nook with a couple used books. We took in the sights at the historic Toubin Park.

Very pretty place to learn about history

Next, we headed over to Bluebell.

The boys and I were excited about ice cream - Southern even had a wardrobe change before this stop

Little did we know, but the busiest week for tours at Bluebell is during Spring Break. Apparently we were lucky to make it before they sold out of tickets for the day. We arrived a little after noon, and after waiting in a looong line, we got the first available tickets - 2:20pm. We debated on whether or not to leave and come back or to wait there. Remington pretty much made that decision for us. He fell asleep in the stroller so we decided to let him just take his nap there. We dug out some sandwiches and drinks from the cooler in the car and snagged a bench outside. After our impromptu lunch, Southern played tag and football with some other waiting kids. The time went by quickly.

Here we are right before our tour - no cameras were allowed beyond this point!

And here we are enjoying our free scoops. Yum...

I got their newest flavor - Strawberry Banana Pound Cake (maybe my new favorite). Dustin got Mint Chocolate Chip (an old reliable). Southern got Strawberry (or "pink" as he called it). It was all so good that we decided to go back for more. Our second scoops (which were more like 2-3 scoops each) were Dessert Trio for me and Coconut Fudge for Dustin. Delicious!

Our only family photo from the trip. A lady offered to take it after Dustin offered to take one of her with her family. As you can tell, it was a little bright outside.

Our next stop was Washington-on-the-Brazos in the neighboring town of Washington. It was Southern's turn to miss out on the fun. He had fallen asleep on the car ride over (I guess running around in the sun for an hour followed by a belly full of ice cream will do that to you) so we stuck him in the stroller.

Exploring the museum while Southern napped

Little brother made up for his missing out on the ice cream by riding a "horse".

This place was really interesting. Learning about Texas' Independence from Mexico was fun! Right, Remington?

"Look, here's Sam Houston!"

We were able to explore outside as well. We learned that the Brazos River forms a confluence with another river in this spot, which is why they decided to cross there. And so the town of Washington was born. We went out to see this and other outdoor landmarks by walking and then driving.

Where the declaration was signed

As Dustin said, "just think of what all these trees have witnessed..."

We splurged on supper Tuesday night

After a very good supper and a not-so-good night's sleep (the boys were really wound up that night), we started the last day of our vacation. We had another great breakfast and then loaded up the car. We stopped by some local shops. Southern got a pair of ostrich boots at the Brenham Saddle Shop. (Interestingly enough we were chased by an ostrich the weekend previously... but that's another story.)

He was so proud of his new boots!

We toured one last museum - The Brenham Heritage Museum. It was an interesting mix of things. One of the people working there was an older lady who took an immediate like to Southern. She spent most of our visit there talking to him. She would lead him around by the hand and show him things and tell him about it all. She even read a book to him from the gift shop.

We got there right at opening time on Wednesday.

After one last drive through Brenham, we headed out of town for the airport. Why were we headed to the airport? Well, I had seen a brochure advertising a 50's-style diner at the airport so we were headed there for lunch. It was great! I got a patty melt. Dustin got a grilled chicken dinner. And Southern had a hot dog with a side of corn casserole. Yum. And after we ate, we got to watch the planes fly in and out.

I was suprised at just how busy this little airport was. And some of the air traffic was just because of that diner. One man and boy exiting a plane said they flew in "because my son wanted a milkshake." Awesome.

      
We continued on our way to the town of Independence, the original home of Baylor University (It started as co-ed, but soon split. Then the women's side of it moved and merged with what is now Mary Hardin-Baylor in Brownwood while the men's side moved and merged with what is now Baylor University in Waco). We took the local self-guided tour and saw ruins of the college and dining hall along with old houses and other buildings.

Southern in front of one of the first public schools in Texas

We ended our trip with fishing at Lake Somerville.

Dustin fishing while Southern "fished" with a stick (he was actually very entertained and happy doing just that for more than an hour). When we were leaving, we asked him if he wanted to take it with him or leave it there. He said he would leave it there so more little boys could fish with it. Aww!

And those of us who weren't fishing...

Remington and I camped out while the "older boys" fished. He snacked on Chex Mix while I read a book.

And that's it folks. After fishing til nearly dark and making a potty stop in the town of Somerville (thank goodness for those small town Dairy Queens!), we drove back home. Dustin was driving this time so we took the "long" way home on I-10. Needless to say, we made pretty good time.

Gift Ideas for Southern

Just in case anyone needs inspiration on gift ideas for Southern's 3rd birthday...

http://amzn.com/w/HYOJX1UZZF6V

He has been outgrowing all of his pants, pajamas, shoes, and socks like crazy. Right now there are very few pairs of pajamas or socks that fit him well in his dresser. Along with clothes, I also included a few toys in this list.

I hope to see you all at his party. It means so much to me and Dustin (and Southern will really appreciate it when he's older and looks back on the pictures of the day). Let me know if you need help with directions!

9 Month Appointment

We went in for Remington's 9-month doctor's appointment yesterday. Everything is going great with out littlest one!

Remington was measured and weighed by the nurse - 21 lbs. We answered a bunch of her questions. Then we saw the doctor. He checked Remington out, and everything looks well. We talked for a bit, and then the nurse came back in. She gave him a little finger prick to check on his iron count as well as the flu booster shot.

I wasn't expecting the shot as there are normally no shots at the 9-month appointment, but his doctor brought it up in our conversation. Apparently, there is what is called a "booster" shot that is made to follow the flu shot around a month after. Dr. S said it's normally not a big deal in his book, but that if he were us, he would definitely take advantage of it this time. This year's batch of the booster contains the stuff for H1N1 as well. So by giving Remington that booster, we have given him reduced chances of catching the flu along with probable lifetime immunity to H1N1. Very cool! And Remington was a real trooper during the prick and shot - no crying at all.

Dr. S also brought up Remington's orange nose. I had noticed in some pictures (mainly the ones taken with my small point-and-shoot Nikon with direct flash) that his nose would look really orange. I just chalked it up to the lighting. But apparently babies who have a diet high in yellow/orange vegetables get a slight orange pigmentation to their nose and cheeks. Interesting.

We ended the appointment by making new appointments for both of our sons. Southern's 3 year appointment early next month, and Remington's 1 year appointment in early June. Oh how time flies!

Tips from my Granny

Growing up, I was highly influenced by my grandparents as well as my parents. I spent many days in their care while my parents were working, and I learned a lot from them. At the time, I just took it for granted. But looking back, I am really thankful.

Here are some helpful tips I learned from my granny:

1) Keep a safety pin in your purse. If you ever need to take off your rings, merely slide them onto the safety pin, attach it to the inside of your purse, and you will never forget or lose them. Love this! I keep a safety pin attached to the hole in the zipper pull inside my purse and have used it - especially on beach trips!!

2) Spray a little perfume on your hair at the top of your head. Guys are taller than you, and this is what they'll smell first. So true! I do this before date night, and Dustin always notices that I smell good :)

3) When you've painted your nails, and you think they're just about dry, run them under cold water. How many times have you tested your drying nail polish only to get a fingerprint indention left behind? I know I have. So I make it a point to always run my nails under cold water now. I don't know why or how, but they are dry and firm immediately after.

More habits/lessons I learned from my granny:

- I pronounce wash with an 'r', as in warsh. I have my granny to thank for that :)
- I don't like to chew a whole stick of gum at a time. It's too much. I would always split a stick of gum with my granny before church, so I am used to only having half. I usually make Dustin split mine with me now.
- She taught me to polka. I've never had the occasion to use this particular skill, but I'll be sure that my boys can polka when they're a little older!
- My granny loved taking pictures to mark milestones - first day of school, etc. I saw this and wanted a camera at a early age. With my first roll of film, I tested my skills out on our chickens. My granny paid to get it developed and must have been suprised when she saw about 20 pictures of our chickens from different angles.