Saturday, October 30, 2010

Asheville and the Biltmore

Biltmore Estate - October 2010

Last weekend, we went to Asheville, NC to see our friends Vicky, Carrie, and Aaron. T.J. went to high school with the girls. We rented a cabin and saw the Biltmore Estate, which was completely fabulous! I even got to go to a fiber fair (yarn convention). The weather was beautiful, and the leaves were turned, but unfortunately I left the camera at home. Lucky for me both Carrie and Vicky had their cameras, so we still have lots of pictures.

Joseph enjoyed playing in the leaves

What you lookin' at?

Hanging out in the yard at the cabin

Biltmore Conservatory
Biltmore Gardens

Biltmore Gardens

On our way to the Estate!
The Three Musketeers

Mama and Daddy are wiped out

Friday, October 29, 2010

FO: Charity Hat

My local yarn shop, Knitch, is doing a charity knitting drive - 100 hats in 100 days. It ends on Nov. 1, and since I just finished my stocking, I thought it'd be a nice break before I get to work on Joseph's stocking.

Hats are so fast, now! I started it during naptime, and diligently finished it this evening. It's *enormous* but I'm sure someone at the homeless shelter can use it. Maybe there is a really large headed Notre Dame fan just waiting for this one!

When is fun bad?

What say you, readers?

A folded metal ironing board, propped on the couch to create a ramp for Joseph's cars to go down. He has figured out that he can climb up it to get onto the couch. He's climbed up it and then gotten off the couch about 10 times while I've been typing.

Do you think it's a bad idea to let him do this?

I blame Gymboree, by the way. It's like a primative Gymbo course! Ha.

The Morning Routine

Apparently, Joseph is picking up on our morning routine. Comb hair, brush teeth, and...

Powder Nose

Bwhahaha!

Thursday, October 28, 2010

FO: Christmas Stocking #2

So far, T.J. has claimed stocking #1. I think this will be my stocking, and the next one will be Joseph's by default. I still need to block them, line them, and stitch the names on.

If you want the info, check out my ravelry info. It has the reindeer pattern and the body pattern, which weren't part of the original design.


The two together - mine is on the left, the one on the right is for T.J.

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

You make me want to Shout!

Joseph and I spent the morning cutting up the rug... check it out!

link

There are also a couple new ones of his first chocolate chip cookie (made by me, of course!).

Enjoy!

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Al Fresco

The weather is so fantastic lately, and the sun is now at a better angle for hanging out on the porch, so Joseph and I had dinner outside today. The light was just right to get his gorgeous eyes.

He's such a looker. Even with the avocado in his mouth and pot pie on his chin. Not that I'm biased or anything.

These have no editing!

Joseph, where are your ears?

Joseph, where is your nose?

Where is your head?

Where is Joseph?

There he is! Peek-a-boo!

How big is Joseph?

Joseph is SO big!

With a Wink and a Smile

Day and Night.

I haven't updated on sleep issues in a while, but Joseph is like a new person when it comes to sleep. Not only does he generally sleep through 10+ hours, he goes into his bed with a SMILE! He loves his entire bath time routine - the bath, book, brushing teeth(!), and getting into bed. No more tears, no more hours of rocking and nursing and fighting.

So what did we do? Besides put him to sleep awake rather than nursing to sleep, we did nothing.

Nada.

So for all you moms who don't want to CIO, or who CIO didn't work for, well... there is hope!

Monday, October 18, 2010

FO: Flirty Frock

I originally made this for my friends Megan and Justin. Unfortunately my gauge was off and, well, babies grow, so Shelby will be getting something else.

It was my first real lace project, and I like how it turned out!

FO: Rugby Pullover Sweater

It's true that I hate knitting sleeves. Having a baby in Florida to knit for just gives me an excuse to do short sleeves!

Another item for Mr. Dylan - I think it'll be adorable w/ a long-sleeved onesie underneath!

FO: Professor Vest

When I was searching for something to make for my friends Sian and Marcus, I saw this vest and knew it was perfect. You see, I met them while in the PhD program at Emory, and Marcus didn't quit like me, so he's actually a professor now! Since the pattern is called the "professor vest", I figured it was meant to be.

Their had their son Dylan several months ago. I finished it about a month ago, but it took me a bit to get it mailed out. Then I wanted to wait to post it until they received it...

Anyway, I can't wait to see pictures of him in it! Sian says that he fits into it now - so it's a good thing I got on the ball!

Sunday, October 17, 2010

Good Morning

It's Fall! Which means footie pajamas! I can't believe how BIG those things are this year. What happened to my tiny baby???

Pardon me - my mouth is full of banana.

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Pumpkin Head

We went to a pumpkin patch on Monday with our play group. It was an easy 45 minute drive, and Joseph slept the whole way! When we got there, we had a few minutes for photos before hopping on the hay ride that took us out to the pumpkins. There we tortured the toddlers and then took them back for lunch at the picnic area. Joseph's favorite part was after everyone else left and he got to play on the tractor.

One of 2 smiles all day.
Cute photo op before the hayride meltdowns
I guess he's not impressed with hay rides yet.
Our (hay) ride
Hey, kid, this is supposed to be *fun*
Extremely displeased that I detached myself from him.
At least the moms had a good time!
Farmer J
Get out of my way, people! Serious work happening here.
We're leaving? Great, I can smile now!

Monday, October 11, 2010

A Home of Our Own


T.J. and I put an offer on a house this weekend, and it was accepted today! We are SO excited! It's a bit of a fixer-upper, but should be a gem of a house with a little elbow grease.

We still have to get an inspection, but I'm hopeful that it'll turn out OK!

Here are a bunch of photos I took this weekend for your amusement.

Closing date is November 19!

Saturday, October 9, 2010

Weaning Gradually and With Love

I've been meaning to write on this topic for a while. Periodically it comes up that Joseph is still nursing. We are certainly in the "weaning" phase now, but I hate to describe it that way lest it comes off as me forcing it.

The term "child led weaning" actually relates to the idea that you let kids start eating solid foods at their own rate, using large pieces of food rather than purees. I never really got the reason that they called it "weaning" but it's become clear to me over the last couple of months that with the first bite of solid food a child has, the weaning process begins.

Weaning is not a linear thing. Sickness, teething, emotional and physical changes - they all contribute to the amount of nursing that you will do if you nurse "on demand" like we do. La Leche League advocates "weaning gradually and with love", and I think that's a great way to do it. We went through a period when Joseph was about 14 months old where I lost 5 pounds because he'd picked up so much. Oh, the good old days. Ha!

But in the last month or two, we've really been cutting back. First we dropped the morning and afternoon sessions that didn't coincide with naps and bedtimes. Then I tried skipping the bedtime session and he didn't miss it. Next was the naptime session. Right now, we're down to nursing in the morning when he wakes up (it buys me an entire hour at 5am) and periodically in the morning or afternoon if he's feeling a little anxious (usually during play group).

I have mixed feelings about it, but mostly I'm ready to be done. I didn't really have an end goal in mind at first, but then as we hit a year I figured it'd make sense to nurse to 2 years so that he could get the immune system benefits through the winter. I don't think we're going to do that at this point, though. I have no plan to force him to stop nursing, but I have a feeling that if I just woke up with him and gave him a cup of milk he'd drop the morning session without issue as well.

We have started to enjoy other means of being close - lots of book reading, cuddles, and kisses. I'm not worried about being able to connect with him. In fact, it'll be neat to be able to connect in ways he never let me before, as he preferred nursing to those other activities with me!

The point of this post is that there is no "right" time to wean. Following the cue of your child, and (also important) your own wishes, you'll find the time that's right for you and your child.

Pittsburgh Comes to Atlanta

Though we didn't plan it this way originally, our trip up to Ohio was only a week before T.J.'s parents had decided to come to Atlanta for their yearly visit. It worked out really well, though, in that Joseph was used to having them around. Mama and Daddy used it to their advantage to go out a few times and leave bedtime to Grandma and Grandpa!

Here are some photos from their trip:

Joseph's current favorite: the zoo train

Grandpap teaching Joseph about riding motorcycles

Through the tunnel!

Playground fun

Look, it's Dory!

Mama loves it when Grandma takes photos - cause then she is in some!

What're you looking at?

Pffffft!

Grandma and Granpap at the aquarium with Joseph

Well rested mama

Yum, tasty truck!

Friday, October 8, 2010

Visit to Pittsburgh

T.J. and I had a wedding to attend in Ohio, so we flew into Pittsburgh and dropped Joseph off with the grandparents for the weekend! It worked out really well for everyone. I'm not sure who had more fun, to be honest. We flew up on Wednesday and left them on Friday, so Joseph had a couple of days to get acclimated. Then we all flew back to Atlanta on Sunday. He ate, slept, and behaved very well for grandma and grandpap, which made us all happy!

Having a snack with MeeMaw
Envisioning a bright future with Auntie Mar. OK, they are just looking at a light.
Became a human towel at the playground after a big rain
Faux Hawk at its finest - Sunscreen is good goop.
Keeping an eye on the house
Before leaving Joseph for 2 DAYS! Yeah, my smile is slightly forced. :)
Go Steelers!
Gussied up to go to a party with Grandpap
Again, what's up with him aging YEARS in photos?
Say Cheese!

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