pickles and suckers

i had to post this...it grossed me out so much! we went to disneyland today with gandpa craig and gammy julie and buddy, hope and katlyn and bryson wanted a pickle today REAL bad. he also had the sucker gammy gave him in his other hand and took turns biting the pickle and licking the sucker. so unbelievably gross! i kept thinking that it cant be good...not even for a 3 year old but he went at it for about 20 minutes. he finished the whole pickle. that kid ate more today than i have EVER seen him...i dont know if it is a growth spurt or if disneyland makes him hungry, but man alive he was a garbage disposal. and for being at disneyland he ate fairly healthy - 2 apples, string cheese, yogurt, craisins, la brea bakery hot dog (which are HUGE and he ate the whole thing) the pickle of course, the sucker, watermelon, strawberry and a couple bites of katlyn's sorbert. amazing. i guess i need to start getting used to this - i have a feeling bodie might be a healthy eater...costco here i come!

I nursed Bodie today on Pirates of the Carribean... i typically never leave disneyland without riding it and from having an annual pass for years in h.s. and now that is a lot of times i have ridden it...i thought of all the different circumstances and giggled that now here i am nursing a baby on this ride...i also nursed him next to california screamin and buzz lightyear and the parking lot...it was quite an experience...

oh...also...another potty training tip...ask your toddler BEFORE you stand in a 40 minute line if they have to potty because they will ALWAYS need to potty while in a line...ALWAYS. whether disneyland or the post office or the target return line. its inevitable.

beyond borders

i am rather excited/proud that our third project this year is complete. i am chairing the project committee for the Junior League of Long Beach this year and we have had quite the packed year...last week was the plays we helped fund for the 5th graders at Stevenson Elementary. i was/am so proud of them - they have come so far since their first class and they all did so good at their final performance. Click here to read more about the plays - the Press Telegram came! it makes all the hard work worth it when you see how impacting the program is!

potty training tips

so just a tip in case you are potty-training a boy. if you are stuck in the car in a big parking lot in the midst of running errands and also happen to be nursing a baby and your toddler tells you he needs to pee - you should probably just stop what you are doing and run to the nearest bathroom, even if it is super far. whatever you do dont tell that toddler to pee inside a water bottle because it is a potty emergency. if you do that you may just have that toddler ask you about 50 times a day if he can pee in a bottle - even after you asked him to be quiet about the peeing in the bottle thing. even after you explained to him 10 times that mommy only had him pee in the bottle because there were no toilets around and we do not pee in bottles...that will not matter to him and he may continue to ask you another 50 times if he can pee in a bottle, and if not a bottle than a tree or a bush. happy parenting!

2 Months Old

Bodie - you are 2 months old today. you are growing so much! probably due to the fact of how great an eater you are! you nurse about every 2-3 hours during the day (more like 2) and have been sleeping loooong stretches at night - you usually go down around 10pm and wake around 4 or 5. i thank you for that. you at 2 months sleep better than your brother at 3 years...which is a little indication of how different you two are already! you are in love with your brother. anytime he talks to you and says "goo" you immediately burst into a smile. you rolled over the other day and you are so muscly...anyone that holds you immediately comments on how strong you are - how big you are - and most comment on how much you look like daddy. you have a contagious smile - you glow when you smile and you smile a lot! i dont think i have heard you cry in about 2 weeks...you still prefer to grunt, which is amazing - i didn't know that was possible! you love the moby and usually live inside there during the day. you like to make cute noises and don't mind being held by anyone...so long as you are being held. you are such a joy of a baby and make me want to have 10 more...okay maybe not 10, but i definitely want another as soon as you aren't a baby anymore because i am loving this so much!

Lasagna Recipe Review

we got this amazing cookbook from joel and jena...love it. we have made several things from here...bar-b-que pork butt, holiday cookies, pancakes, all types of meat...you name it this book has it. one of my new years resolutions is to make more italian food for my italian husband and i always seem to screw up lasagna. should be easy right? i never layer right...i am horrible at spatial anything. i can't pack the car to save my life...bryan hates my closets...so the whole task of saving the meat and cheese to last several layers never happens with me. my lasagna is usually like 2 layers...i think it supposed to be like 5 or 6. oh well...i'll never win a lasagna competition...my life will go on. even though my layers weren't great - the lasagna turned out really good. it was an herbed meatball lasagna with parmesan and mozzarella - no ricotta. the book always gives a little tidbit about the different recipes they tried and they blame ricotta for "lasagna meltdown"...i thought that was pretty funny...i kept saying it like it was a crisis - "oh no - we have a lasagna meltdown...mayday mayday" okay not so much funny outside of my head, but anyway...it was my first time making meatballs and they were awesome and i did not miss the ricotta at all. i think bryan did...he said it was really good, but one time i tried to make a "low-fat" version of lasagna and substituted cottage cheese for ricotta - not a good thing. turns out that is like a crime in italy and my husband was very upset about this...still won't let me live it down. i would share the recipe with you, but it is SUPER long and detailed and really - you should have this book anyway.

amazing what can get done...

without a certain 3 year old around...it is eerily quiet in the house. my brother and his wife stayed the night last night. we all saw centrevol perform (my brother-in-law is the singer) and then they, along with their girls, came over for a pajammy-jammy-jam...this morning they asked bryson to come home with them and, to my surprise, he agreed! so just like that they took him and bryan and i have gotten loads done today! we finally cleaned out the office closet...posted all sorts of stuff on ebay...cleaned house...sewed all sorts of stuff (to be posted later...apparantly its a secret...ooohhh i know you are curious...too bad...you have to wait) lets see...what else did we do? oh yeah - i got to go to the bathroom uninterrupted and eat uninterrupted. also - i have had a little bit of quiet to think...yes...that thing i used to do with my brain before it fried due to constant interrogation. its a good thing. i think both of us needed a little break from each other. this gives me some time to spend alone with Bodie (i was able to nurse him today and stare at him the entire time...remembering how i used to do that ALL the time with Bryson...sigh...) and Bryson some good quality time with his cousins. bryan and i are even talking about doing a dinner date...with bodie of course...but he is quiet and we may be able to have a CONVERSATION...remember those?

the magic is back!!!

i should sell this stuff...between me and my mother-in-law we could really make "them" a lot of money....and by them i mean Lord Pharoah ImHotepAmonRa - i'm not kidding...i can't make this stuff up...too genius. i should start off the story of how we came to love egyptian magic correctly. remember in the movie "big fat greek wedding" the dad and his windex....and how it cured everything? my mom used a product called de-solv-it and that was her windex - gum in your hair? de-solv-it will get it out...peanut butter in the rug...dont even worry about it...squeaky hinge? you know what to use...on and on. well one day when we were newly-marrieds something came up and i wished out loud for de-solv-it. bryan asked me what it was and i told him and he laughed and said that his mom's windex was egyptian magic. there was an ongoing joke in their family because she used it for EVERYTHING that even when the car would break down - "dont worry...egyptian magic will fix it!". i had never heard of the stuff, but the joke caught on and pretty soon i was joking about the stuff as well...pretty much because of the super-amazing name of it. well...fast forward about 5 years and i was taking a knitting class at this store in long beach (which is now sadly gone) and lo and behold in this yarn store under the counter was egyptian magic. i had to get it and begrudgingly forked out $25 for a measly 4oz of the stuff, but i knew how excited bryan would be. sure enough we started using it on EVERYTHING...and by everything i mean it...let me just quote some of the uses that the container itself used to suggest (not sure why the new ones omit the list...it was precious!) skin and hair cream, ease and heal burns, scrapes and bruises, moisterizer, heals chapped lips, vaginal lubricant, hemmorhoid cream, on and on...lets just hope one washes ones hands before they glob it on! the ingredients in case you were wondering are: Olive Oil (Olea Eurpoaaea oil), Beeswax, Honey, Pollen, Royal Jelly and Propolis Extract. anyway - so back to the story and how we used it...turns out the stuff is amazing. diaper rash? i would put it on bryson and by the next diaper it was GONE! chapped lips? this stuff is seriously the best. i ended up misplacing it...not losing mind you...we would always pack it with us when traveling and i probably left it somewhere and i recently ordered another one and just got it in and seriously excited about it...that is how big a dork i am. right now Bodie has cradle cap - i should take before and after pictures just to prove that this stuff will heal it, but that is probably a little bit of crazy...especially since i am not a registered dealer...yet! i should talk to the pharoah about it.

he takes after the biggest baby in texas...

i finally put some batteries (they are the annoying 3 volt kind) in our fish scale and we weighed Bodie - 14 pounds! we (bry and i and bry's parents) were all taking bets as to how big he is. bob (bryan's dad) told me, "now you got yourself a baby!" - this is coming from someone who weighed 14 lbs 10 oz at birth...holding Bodie it is hard to believe any baby could be born naturally at home that big...but that is what the birth certificate says! i told sue at Bodie's 2 week appt that it isn't fair because i never got a newborn...i gave birth to a 3 month old - i looked up a 3 month old developmental milestones and here is where Bodie stands:

By the end of month three a baby typically:
Raises head and chest when put on tummy -YES
Lifts head up 45 degrees -YES
Kicks and straightens legs when on back -YES
Open and shuts hands -YES (although he keeps them mostly closed still)
Pushes down with legs when placed on a hard surface -YES
Reaches for dangling objects -YES
Grasps and shakes hand toys -YES
Tracks moving objects -YES
Begins to imitate sounds -YES (goo, hi, aaaah)
Recognizes familiar objects and people, even at a distance -YES (in love with big brother and daddy's hair)
Begins to develop a social smile -YES
Begins to develop hand-eye coordination - NO
Brings both hands together - YES
Interested in circular and spiral patterns - Umm...not sure...haven't tested this one...
Kicks legs energetically - OH YEAH!
Holds head up with control - YES (daddy even has him facing out in the Baby Bjorn already!)

Valentersary

feb 14 was bryan and i's valentersary...valentines/anniversary in case it wasn't obvious...9 years of valentines...its a long and complicated story and really the only people who can truly appreciate it are the few who were around at the time...the short story of it is that it is when bryan decided he wanted to be with me too (i had already made it clear to him my feelings...he just needed a little more time:) i really appreciate our valentine's tradition - we stay home and forego the fixed menu price jacking at restaurants and bryan cooks me an amazing dinner - lucky me! it usually includes shrimp - he makes the most AMAZING shrimp...i am sure he cooks them all in butter...i don't know and don't want to know because i truly enjoy every bite! this year he went all out - lobster, steak, shrimp, asparagus - edible flowers - i had to take a picture of it...i am so blessed to have such a good cook for a husband (not to mention his other amazing qualities, which i won't go into here and if you know him then you probably know most of them anyway). which is kinda funny because i was telling my niece katlyn (who is soon to be 15) that her uncle bryan is really good at cutting hair (she needed a hair cut) and she responded, "what ISN'T uncle bryan good at?" i know...its annoying isn't it?

the first pic

i found this picture this morning whilst searching for other pictures...dont ask me why i said whilst...anyway - i thought the picture from yesterday's post was my first picture with my boys, but i was wrong - this was taken on christmas eve - bodie's birthday. i had a precious time with bryson and bodie as bryson was trying to wrap his little brain around the new addition and we all ended up falling asleep around 5pm - it was heart-wrenching when we tried to put bryson in his bed that night - all he wanted was to sleep in our bed and he couldnt because of the baby. i had never heard him cry like he did that night. it broke my heart. bryson has come a long way since then and is doing so wonderfully with bodie. and bodie is no longer red...so that is also an improvement...i am still tired...that won't change, but luckily my hormones have calmed down a bit...oh who am i kidding? no they havent!

Happy Birthday Charlotte!

Bryan snapped this shot before he left this morning. bryson has on his "party shirt" because we got all ready for Charlotte's 2nd birthday party and then Daddy left with the camera and so we didnt get any pictures of the party! arghhh...but i realized that this is one of the first pics of me and my boys. i look sorta funny in this picture...i dont believe i had my coffee yet and bryson's smile is so forced, but both of them are looking at the camera, so that is bonus points as far as i am concerned! Charlotte's party went so well - the kids all had a fun time - no serious injuries and us mommas even got to chat a bit...amazing when that happens! i can't believe my little goddaughter is already 2 years old! i feel like we were just at her 1 year party a month ago. she is so precious too - talking up a storm and playing with all the boys like a champ and leading little Ella Jayne around - she has such a great spirit about her - her laugh is infectious and her smile is heart-melting. she is a natural leader and you can tell she is going to go places! i can not wait to see what kind of big sister she is going to be! i love you sweetie

rub a dub dub...

...my boys in the tub...don't worry i am holding up Bodie. Bryson has been so sweet with him recently. he helps get diapers and always wants to hold him. my dad joked about taking Bodie home with him from vegas and bryson got very upset at that notion. it is so much fun to begin to see a sibling connection. i know that i am in for a world of change when Bodie starts walking and REALLY entering Bryson's world, but for now i am enjoying this phase...this protective/helpful/sweet older brother. i had to record it so that in 15 years or so i can pull it out and say, "see bryson...at one point you LOVED Bodie!"

Lost Vegas

lost vegas...that is what bryson kept calling it. very appropriate i thought...we went down with the fam for my niece (Hope)'s cheer competition. Her team got third at nationals! Hope did so well i was so proud of her and couldn't help get flashbacks of high school competitions...oh the days...the make-up and fake hair...anyway - hope cracks me up. when we got in on thursday hope was sleeping and the rest of her family was up - she went to bed early because she "needed her beauty sleep" - hilarious! we ended up having a great time - probably one of the most fun times i have had in vegas...very different than say my mom's bachelorette party or jena, ruthie and i's 21st birthday celebration....but a great vegas trip. hope's competition was on friday and on saturday bryan, sara-britt and i (and bodie via moby) went to the Bodie's exhibit at the Luxor. It was absolutely amazing. it was great to have Sara there too - to explain half the things we were seeing. We then met up with the rest of the family and did some bowling...Bryson almost beat my brother...i just have to add that...bryson did have bumpers but still...how weak is my brother? After bowling we had a quick lunch and then saw Coraline. So amazing...probably one of the most amazing movies i have seen since...i dont know when. it was in 3-D which was also again amazing...i still can not get over the detail of the whole movie. ever since bryan did his own stop-motion movie for his party anthem song - i have a new appreciation for the amount of detail and work and energy that goes into it. i read somewhere that Coraline took 3 years to make...amazing. anyway - go see it and see for yourself! After the movie we headed back home and took a dip in the jacuzzi and then had pizza and played catchphrase and scene it - i still dont know who ended up winning either game...we sorta debated more than we played....the johnson way i guess! this was our first car ride in our new car and the DVD player was amazing...bryan and sara and i were able to have an actual CONVERSATION...crazy...i almost forgot how to do it!

There were a lot of firsts for Bodie too - first road trip, first time to another state, first time gambling (in daddy's arms while playing slots. he got kicked out of the casino portion. i thought it one of our better moments in parenting.) first time with a "sitter" (we had katlyn watch him while we went down the street to the Outdoor World casino - i won $150! i played craps with a bunch of old men who were seriously impressed with my skills - if you are a girl you just say stuff like "dollar boxcars" and "cover my hardways" and old vegas men think its really cool) we were only gone a couple of hours and he slept the entire time, but it was so strange to be apart! Bodie did so great - in the car and being carted around all day in the moby...he is such an agreeable baby...i am still not used to it! i realized too from some of these pictures that he is starting to get some color! thankfully he inherited my eye color and not my skin color!

onesie by paige

thank you paige...i squeezed him into it...poor guy!

cafe brenda black bean vegetable chili

this is minnesota's recipe for chili - based out of Cafe Brenda's recipe in Minneapolis. i made it in homage to cory who was here last weekend. it was a rainy weekend and we lit a fire and it felt like a chili day. the chili itself was gorgeous - black beans, onion, carrots, garlic (it said 4 cloves...surely they meant a whole bulb!) celery, bell pepper, jalapenos, all sorts of spices... (marjoram, chili powder, cayenne, oregano, cumin, salt, coriander) lemon, unsweetened chocolate and topped with roasted pumpkin seeds. the chili was tasty - very SPICY - and not just heat-wise...although it certainly was that - but it had a LOT of taste. the recipe said that in the cafe they will occasionally put the chili in enchiladas, which made sense and i think i will do in a couple nights for dinner with the leftovers since it had a mexican flavor - with the cumin and jalapenos...to be fair i did modify the chili a bit... i added some tomatos to the recipe because i thought it added some needed juice and it toned down some of the spice...oh yeah and of course i quadrupled the garlic it called for (by the way i recently learned that if a nursing mom eats garlic her baby will suckle longer...not sure how they figure, but we'll see after tonight if there is any truth to that!)

Scottish Ale

thanks to max for his expertise and recommendation, i started a scottish ale on monday after a brief hiatus. i ordered my beer this time from Austin Homebrew Supply, also thanks to max's recommendation. i already appreciated their directions a bit better than previous batches because when steeping my grains i didnt have to use a separate pot...which translates to less mess and less dishes to wash...and sanitize...bonus! This beer isn't as hoppy as most of my other brews...i left my kit at Becky's so i dont have the information on the hops and yeast, but that will come with my review perhaps. The process was fun as always and the company was lovely too and i am excited to bottle this batch in a couple weeks! I brewed over at Beckys and she reported that the beer is already going crazy so we'll se...

westmont reunion

santa barbara this past weekend. i am so grateful for great friends and a beautiful day and a gorgeous setting and 4 healthy babies and 1 spitfire toddler and 2 birthdays.

Happy Birthday Ruthie

we went up to Santa Barbara this weekend to celebrate ruthie's 30th (gasp) bday and to see friends and family. oh goodness how we miss it up there. we stopped by ventura on saturday to see ruthie and meet her boyfriend Mark and then up to santa barbara where the gang all got together for a picnic on sunday (more pics to come).

it was so nice to see ruthie - it always is. it makes me so sad to have her so far, but makes the time together when we do see each other so much sweeter! happy birthday friend - we love you!

A Lesson in Money...

Bryson has been asking for a camera every day since christmas when he saw his cousin Kelsey's V-tech camera for kids. It is a bummer that his birthday and christmas are so close together because he has an onslaught of toys and then a 10 month drought if you will.

We told him that he needed to save up his money if he wanted something, so he has been collecting coins and putting them away. he also got $5 from donny from jumping in the pool about a month ago while they were in the jacuzzi. i also included my change bank in on the fun since today we had a lesson in money and saving and tithing.

We counted all his change - put away some for Jesus and then went to the bank and put some of it in the bank for savings and then he took the rest to Best Buy to purchase his first camera - a Diego camera - surrounded in rubber - perfect for a 3 yr old. Bryson will probably find a way to break it...he always does...but he is so excited about it for now! He actually took some pretty cool pictures with our other camera that i will post for him here...

http://www.brysonbarnes.blogspot.com/

because he wanted to "put pictures and numbers (he calls letters numbers still) on the compooter like mommy"

i thought bryson was too young to begin learning about money, but it turned out this is a perfect time for him since he loves collecting coins so much...now he can see what all that collecting can do! i have heard about this book from several different parents - Raising Financially Fit Kids - and what better time than a penny pichining economy to start!

Boat-Y

bry, bryson, bodie and i were at the park today and a little 6 year old boy was playing with bryson. he asked me what my baby's name was and i told him it was Bodie. he laughed and said, "that is a funny name for a baby. why did you call him that? is it because he likes boats?" i started laughing..."yes...he likes boats very much...that is why"...hehehe