Checking in on resolutions...

We're almost a month into 2011 so I thought I better check in on my resolutions. Hopefully by doing this each month I'll find myself being a little more accountable for what I've already put in writing that I want to accomplish.

*spend more time in the kitchen trying new (and hopefully healthy!) recipes for my family
...I am definitely on track with this one. Between finding ways to sneak veggies into Adam's meals and trying new recipes, I've been spending a lot more time in the kitchen and I'm loving it! Some highlights were our lemon grass chicken and grilled balsamic glazed salmon salad. 

*run at least two races (perhaps a spring 5K and maybe a fall 10k?)
...Well, I haven't run the races, but then it isn't spring or fall yet, so I'm safe! ha

*take better pictures
...no progress

*eliminate the need for a "junk drawer"
...no progress

*refinish the bar in our basement (never been very good at DIY projects)
...I read a lot of blogs about refinishing furniture, does that count?

*take Liddy for more walks, she deserves them
...moderate progress has been made, but to be fair, she doesn't like rain/snow/cold either!

*cut out at least one grocery trip a week which means I need to plan my meals better and hopefully following my first resolution will help
...check!

*spend less time at the end of the day focusing on the day I just had at the office and more time focusing on the family
...check!

Ok, so not a bad start!

"Good morning Adam!"

I love going in to get Adam in the mornings.  He is never fussing, just ready to get up.  Of course he likes to ease into it and almost plays hard to get!  He loves his little music player and almost always turns it on the minute we walk in there.  Most days (when I don't have a camera in his face) he does the most adorable dance that makes us laugh everytime.  He will come over towards you and then quickly dive back down and bury his head in his blankets.  It's very entertaining, see for yourself...

Sunday in the kitchen...

With a pretty full to-do (or rather to-make) list...



...and a napping little boy...

...Andy and I took to the kitchen on Sunday morning in an effort to prepare some healthy meals for the week...

 

...and to also make some dinners for our friends who are spending their days (and nights) feeding/burping/changing/cuddling/loving new babies a.k.a. Blake and Marian (congrats again Greg & Erica and Logan & Amanda)

Zucchini bread with flax seed substituted for eggs

Hummus

Mac 'n Cheese (with butternut squash puree and very little cheese)

Did I mention it is whole wheat Mac 'n Cheese with butternut squash cheesy goodness?

Zucchini bread fresh out of the oven

Cauliflower and Carrot Purees to sneak into meals during the week

Stuffed shells with spinach and pea puree (made two batches one for this week and one for the freezer)

...it's amazing what you can accomplish during a 90 minute nap...

The banana bread can wait!

Phew!

Now it's time to cuddle!

I might be biased...

...but is my little buddy just about the cutest thing you've ever seen? Ok ok, so I get that many of you reading this have your own little ones that you probably think are the cutest things you've ever seen...but I mean come on?! Look at this guy...don't you just want to eat him up??



"Ah, waiter, I'll have the 'Adam' with a side of 'Liddy', thanks!"



...and is there anything better than pj time? I could gobble those little footy pajama feet up!!

"Ah, waiter, excuse me I'd like my 'Adam' served up with footy pajamas, and I still want the side of 'Liddy' but could I also have some freshly shampooed 'curly hair' for dessert?"




...add in some pre-bedtime cuddle time with the hubby, the boy, and the dog and I'm just about in sweet tooth heaven!!





"Check please!!"

Happy birthday Ryan!

Saturday was Adam's friend Ryan's first birthday! Adam was so happy to be invited to his birthday party and asked if we could head to Richmond on Saturday to attend! We were happy to oblige, besides, it was a great excuse for us to see our friends Aimee and Chris (a.k.a. Ryan's parents!)

Adam and Ryan had fun playing together and Ryan even gave Adam some hugs and kisses--it was very cute--though I'm sure in 18 years Ryan will be embarrassed to hear about it! ha





Chris and Aimee made some awesome food, for which we'll need the recipes, and everything was topped off with a huge birthday cake! Ryan was a little timid with all the sugary goodness, but something tells me it won't be long before he learns to appreciate cake and icing (if he's anything like his mom! Kidding Aimee...but you know I'm really not!) ;)







Ryan got TONS of great gifts to help commemorate this milestone occasion and we look forward to heading back down soon for another visit so Adam can help him break in all his new toys!



Happy birthday Ryan!

Adam's new play area...

I always hate having to take down my Christmas decorations. The house goes from being sparkly and festive and even though for 11 months out of the year my house is without all that decor, it still seems so bland and boring the minute I take everything down. So, to battle the "post holiday decor blues" I usually end up doing some rearranging of furniture to help give the house a fresh look.

This year we rearranged our living room furniture but more importantly we reorganized the basement to make more room for all of Adam's new toys! We don't spend a ton of time in the basement with Adam because let's face it, we're pretty much always in the kitchen, but we're hoping that with more of a "play room" feel we'll find ourselves down there more often.

The center piece of the room is the awesome toy chest that Auntie Amy made for Adam. He's big enough now that he can get into it on his own and he entertained himself for a good 15 minutes on Sunday just taking all of the toys out. We actually had some success with getting him to put most of the toys back in when we were finished....some success...come on folks, he's only 16 months old! ;)



We also found a great wall hanging from Home Goods. Andy was feeling a little stressed about all the bright colored plastic toys that were now being displayed more prominently in our basement, so the wall hanging helps to make the space a little more polished, while still being child friendly. Great success!




I still want to add a collage of framed pictures on the other wall. Here's hoping it doesn't take until next year's "post holiday decor blues" to get that done!

New Year's Resolutions...

I've never been big on making resolutions, I guess I just figure if I keep some goals locked away in my own mind then it won't be such a big deal when I inevitably fail to meet them. But, I figured maybe, just maybe, if I put them out in the open and saw them in writing, that it might force me to work towards meeting them. And, I figure if I've got a few of you out there checking in on my progress, that might be a good motivator as well.

So here goes it, a few things I'd like to accomplish in the coming year...and in no particular order...

...spend more time in the kitchen trying new (and hopefully healthy!) recipes for my family...

...run at least two races (perhaps a spring 5K and maybe a fall 10k?)...

...take better pictures...

...eliminate the need for a "junk drawer"...

...refinish the bar in our basement (never been very good at DIY projects)...

...take Liddy for more walks, she deserves them...

...cut out at least one grocery trip a week which means I need to plan my meals better and hopefully following my first resolution will help...

...spend less time at the end of the day focusing on the day I just had at the office and more time focusing on the family...

I think that's a good list to start off the new year. I'm sure there are more things I could add and a few that I probably shouldn't have to work on, but here's hoping those are the easy ones to check off as "done!"

Happy 2011 everyone, let's make it a productive, healthy, happy and blog worthy year! :)

Our new toy...

Adam got lots of fun toys for Christmas (as per the last four or so posts) but Andy and I also got a fun toy for Christmas, a new coffee maker!

When we were at Greg and Erica's a few weekends ago, they were showing off their gift to one another, the new Cuisinart Brew Station. We got to enjoy a fresh brewed coffee from it and realized that not only did it make really good coffee, but the convenience of being able to make one quick cup of coffee in the morning without throwing out half a pot of joe was intriguing!

I had mentioned that we were impressed with this coffee maker to my mom and sure enough it was waiting for us under their tree on Christmas day!

We've already enjoyed some hot chocolate, coffee, and even some tea and while neither one of us is looking forward to waking up and heading off to work tomorrow, at least we'll each be able to enjoy a guilt free cup of coffee to start off the day!

Wintergreen

Since Andy and I were both off of work for the week we decided to take our annual holiday trip up to the mountain. It was nice to get away and relax for a few days. Adam had fun playing with some of his new toys (we would have needed a Uhaul to bring all of them up), Andy enjoyed reading a new book on his new Kindle, and I watched two seasons of "Dexter." Ha! Everyone got to do what they wanted, and it was wonderful! :)




We did get outdoors a bit though. We took Adam and Liddy up to see the ski slopes and to also check out the new ice skating rink that they put in. Adam was happy to have an excuse to model his new winter coat!








Towards the end of the week the weather warmed up a bit and we were able to get in a quick picnic and some running around time for Adam.






It was a great week and nice way to unwind after all the Christmas fun!

Christmas at Grandma and Grandpa's...

After Adam's morning nap and some lunch we loaded up the car and headed over to Grandma and Grandpa's for more Christmas fun!

Immediately when we got there Adam spotted one of his presents, a ride on train!! He loved riding it around and pushing it around as well. It was a great distraction, that is until Olivia's music table caught his eye! He tested it out for her to make sure it was working, ha!






We had a great afternoon with the whole family, including my aunt Anne and uncle Jim. Adam was spoiled with great gifts from everyone, and our house is now fully stocked with every toy he could ever want and his closet is locked and loaded for winter!










It was a great day from start to finish spent with both sets of grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousin Olivia, and one happy and much loved little boy!!




I hope everyone had as wonderful a Christmas as we did! Ho Ho Ho!