Acorn Squash

As most of you know, I love to cook, bake, grocery shop...anything having to do with the kitchen.  So it's not a surprise that I was very excited to make my own baby food.  First on the list was apples, bananas and pears.  Bananas I just mash up with a fork.  Apples and pears on the other hand, need a little more TLC before they are ready to eat.  I know it's easy to run to the store to pick up already prepared baby food, but not that I have the hang of what it takes...not a chance do I want to buy it.  I spent $1 on an acorn squash and got about 30 servings....do the math on that!  

Veggies start out in the following order, acorn squash, sweet potatoes and butternut squash.  They're all in the freezer, ready to go.

our first taste of acorn squash

Baked

peeled

pureed

freezer bound and ready to eat!

Big girl activities

In the last few weeks Ms. Josie has experienced quite a few new things...

Rode in the stroller without carseat

got on all fours {by accident}

rode in the big girl seat at the grocery store

sat in a highchair at a restaurant, and didn't slide out

went swimming

Sleeping through the night!!!!!

It's been a long time coming!!!  at 7 months old, Josie FINALLY started sleeping through the night.  Let me give you some back ground.  At her 6 month appointment, she had dropped to the 10% in weight.  I had expressed to the doctor that she was waking up at night, at least twice and I had figured out that she was hungry, so I was feeding her.  I thought I was getting us into a bad pattern, but then the doctor told me to feed her every time she fussed, day or night.  So that is what I did, for a MONTH!  It was like she was 2 months old again.  We went in on January 7th for a weight check and Ms. Josie B put on 3 lbs!!!!!  {do the math, that's 30% of her body weight}That was glorious news, I didn't have to feed her twice at night, and of course that she was back into the 50% for weight.  

On January 7th, we started sleep training (thanks Andrea) and the cry it out method.  There is a lot of controversy about this method, but we knew that she was healthy and could make it through the night, we marched on!  Of course the night we decide to start....she slept through the night!  Night two was more what I expected...around 2:30 she was up crying and wanted her pacifier.  I got up, for what I thought was going to be a long night and low and behold.....one round of 3 minutes, 5 minutes and 10 minutes and we were all back to sleep.  That was it! One night....I'm so thankful!  Since then she has been blissfully sleeping through the night.  Now, I will admit that there are 3 other pacifiers in the crib...you do what you have to do!  ah...zzzzzzzzzz

Christmas 2010

I'm so far behind....

We had a fabulous Christmas with my family and sadly only had phone calls to Kyle's family.  They celebrated in Fargo and we were all over Denver.  Christmas Eve we went to the church I grew up at, it was so nice to be back.  They have the best Christmas Eve service!  We enjoyed dinner at CC's house and from the sounds of it, that may have been the last year she wants to host Christmas eve dinner?!  She said she is making changes in her 80th year.

Christmas morning we spent at my mom's house with Dan, Kel, CC, Mom, and the three of us.  It was so nice.  The Christmas tree looks like it had presents under it for 40 people....which turned out to be 50+% for Josie!  We opened gifts for hours!  It was fun.  All Josie really cared about was the bows.  After she very short morning nap, we set her in a box of bows and she had a blast.

Christmas dinner Kyle and I typically spend it the two of us, but this year my Uncle Steve came Christmas afternoon, so we had CC, my mom, Uncle Steve and us for dinner at our house.  About 5 years ago we started doing New Mexico style enchiladas on Christmas, totally non-traditional, but a very loved recipe from my grandma.  Oh they were so good....maybe I'll share the recipe soon?!  It was a wonderful holiday filled with lots of love and family.

A very special gift from CC (GG).  We all have stockings hand made by CC

patiently waiting to open presents

trying Leftse for the first time