7 Months

Isn't this kid handsome?  He's growing up and getting cuter with every month!  Every month I think he couldn't possibly get cuter, but every time he does.  What a talented little guy! :)

To me, it seems as though Johnny has grown up a lot more this month than in other months.  He's definitely made the change from infant to baby.  He's such a blast to play with!  He babbles and laughs, throws temper tantrums when he's frustrated, and loves observing everything around him.  With the exception of occasional fits of frustration, he's still such a happy baby boy!

Last week, Jami and her family came to visit us, and Johnny was so tickled to have so many people around!  My nephew Ace was especially fond of Johnny, and by the end of the week if he noticed Ace walk in the room, his eyes would light up with a big smile and those feet would start a-kickin'!  Johnny just loves people, and is getting quite proficient at flirting with the ladies.  Don't know how I feel about that in the long run, but it's stinkin' cute for the time being...

Here's a look at our handsome boy at 7 months old:

*Still in size 3 diapers and shoes

*Too big for his 9 month clothes, so is building up his 12 month wardrobe (fun!)

*Army crawls like a champ

*Sits independently for as long as he wants

*Sleeps in his own room

*Needs a pillow to cuddle with in order to fall asleep

*Loves eating solids, especially those he can eat with this fingers like a big boy

*Still nurses, which makes me very happy

*Absolutely has a love affair with mine and Danny's water bottles (he's the only 7 month old I know that can proficiently drink from any straw)

*Says "Mama-mama" when he sees something he likes, especially Mama :)

*Gets really excited and starts looking for Daddy when he can hear Danny talk

*Is still crazy about his sisters

*Has started to give more hugs than kisses

With this post, it's official.  My baby is closer to being a one year-old than being a newborn.  Sigh.  But I have to admit, I'm having a blast watching him grow up into a strong little boy.  Johnny, you make your Mama and your Daddy so happy!  We love you, Buddy!

Milestones: Sitting Unassisted and the Army Crawl

These milestones are starting to come up quick, now!  In the last couple of weeks, Johnny has mastered both the army crawl and the ability to sit unassisted for as long as he likes (most of the time).

It's kind of hard to capture the army crawl in action, but you get the idea:

This kid is too stinkin' cute!  He's cute crawling around, and he's cute sitting still!

It's crazy to think that the next milestones include pulling himself up to standing and walking!  Oh, where did the time go?

I Even Amaze Myself Sometimes...

Yes, that is me holding my book!  I actually followed through with my goal to turn this blog into a book.  I don't have a great track record of following through with goals, so I'm pretty tickled pink about this one!

The book turned out better than I could have hoped, and Danny and I know it's something we will treasure forever.  This book, entitled "Call Family History 2010", is 302 pages long and covers every major event (and a lot of minor ones, too) that happened to our family through the year.  I documented virtually every week of my pregnancy with Johnny.  I caught the girls on camera doing all sorts of cute things, and documented the story to go along with it.  In short, I have a complete family history for an entire year!  

I rock.  :)

I can't wait until we have a whole bookshelf full of these tomes!  

Live The Life: Week Nine

I think I have to be honest.  I've pretty much jumped ship at this point!  As mentioned, I stopped eating on the Live The Life schedule a few weeks back.  And I'm just getting burned out on the workouts.  I can't seem to get really into them anymore, so I'm just going through the motions.  I'm enjoying my runs, but the strength training is getting, well, boring.

I've been struggling with myself for the last week or so.  I really, REALLY wanted to finish this program.  And I wouldn't classify myself as a quitter.  So, do I "go through the motions" (and kind of pathetically at that) for a few more weeks, just so I have 12 posts for 12 weeks?  Or do I admit that I'm not going to finish this, and move on to something that I will enjoy doing and keep me working towards being healthier?  Obviously, I chose the latter.

So, here we are!  Week Nine, and my last.  It was a good experience, and one I think I'll revisit.  I really did learn a lot about food and appropriate calorie intake, which I know will be invaluable.  I learned a lot about exercise, and realized that it will have an effect...even on me!  I know that sounds silly, but I don't know that I really believed it would work.  I also realized that I can, indeed, run!  I started out at Week One, and I was barely able to run for 5 minutes!  As of this morning, I comfortably ran 25 consecutive minutes without stopping or slowing down.  That is an incredible accomplishment!  This is coming from the girl who had panic attacks when it was time to run the mile in grade school.  Literal panic attacks.

Speaking of running, I've decided what I'm going to work on next.  On our 30 Before 30 list, Danny and I set the goal to run a 10k.  So that's my next program!  I'm going to train to run a 10k this summer.  Along with my running program, I think I'm going to give pilates a try.  I really want to be more flexible, and I want my muscles to still get some work.  I can't believe I'm going to say this, but I'm excited about running now!  Go figure!

I think I've made some ground in the last nine weeks.  I'm working on loving myself more as I am, and accepting that I will always be working on being healthy.  I know I still spend too much time and energy worrying about my appearance, and honestly too much energy thinking about what fitness regimen I'm doing.  But I hope that I'm establishing a lifestyle that will be more habitual, and so take less thought, as time goes on. Would I recommend Live The Life?  Certainly!  It is a great tool in my toolbox of health and fitness.

So, thank you to all that were such a support during this program!  And a special thanks to my wonderful husband, who was always so supportive and kept me going.  And I can't forget the kids, who entertained themselves without destroying too much of the house every morning for an hour and a half while I worked out.  You guys are all awesome!

And the coolest part of all?  This program got me back to my pre-Johnny weight before my little guy was 7 months old!  Nice!  I can't realistically ask for much more than that... :)

Here are my final numbers, and the big picture reveal!

FINAL RESULTS


18 lbs lost
5 inches off my waist
4 1/4 inches off my hips

Can't Beat This Sale!

Claire pulled a price tag off something, and decided it was time to see how Johnny fared in today's market.

Shoot, if you ask me, no price is too high for this little guy!  

SOLD!

Mama's Birthday

Another birthday is in the books!  I turned 28 on the 2nd.  Seriously!  That's getting awfully close to 30, which seems weird.  I don't feel old enough to be that close to 30!

My birthday this year was celebrated in bits and pieces over a couple of weeks.  A week or so before my big day, Danny went ahead and gave me my birthday presents.  The "Our Best Bites" cookbook!  But that wouldn't be any good without my other present...a KitchenAid!  Yay!  I can't believe I ever bothered baking without it!

And I'm only slightly embarrassed to admit how many batches of cookies and such I've baked (and subsequently partaken of) since receiving this awesome gift! :)  With my gifts, Danny put us on the road to accomplishing one of our 30 Before 30 goals of cooking our way through a cookbook.  We're so excited!  To kick off the goal, and use my new toys, we baked up a batch of OBB's Peanut Butter and White Chocolate Chip Chocolate Cookies.  Yeah...Chocolate is in the title twice.  ;)

The cookies were delicious, and so easy to make in my KitchenAid!  The kids are loving all the fresh baked cookies, and I seem to still be losing weight, so everyone's happy! :)

The week of my birthday arrived, and unfortunately we bid goodbye to Danny.  He had his first business trip over the week of my birthday!  Lame!  But we made the best of it, and ate a lot of cookies! :)  The kids slept in on my birthday, and were pretty pleasant during the day.  I heard from all my friends and family, which was wonderful!  The kids and I headed into Palmdale in the late afternoon and took Johnny to his well-child appointment.  So I spent the remainder of my birthday consoling my little guy after his yucky shots.  And though I missed Danny like crazy, it was still a good day!

Friday finally came around, and Danny got home from Georgia after lunch.  The kids and I were so excited to see him!  We relaxed for the rest of the day, and just enjoyed being together.  Saturday was the day we set aside to actually celebrate my birthday, and it was a beautiful day!  Since it was my day, I decided I wanted to get the yard cleaned up.  So we all spent a few hours outside working, which was wonderful!  After naps, we headed into town to do a little bit of shopping and pick up my birthday cupcakes...

We just noticed Double "D" Cupcakes" a few weeks ago, and thought it would be a good idea to do cupcakes instead of an entire cake for my birthday.  We were excited to find out that they just won Food Network's "Cupcake Wars"!  How cool is that?!  :)  

We stuck some candles in those bad boys and sang "Happy Birthday".  (Unfortunately, Sophie had a complete emotional break-down after getting in trouble, so she went to bed early.  The little stinker swiped her cupcake early and had eaten a fair amount of it after numerous warnings to wait until it was time to sing!  I missed having her with us for the singing and cake-eating, but a parent's job is never done...even on your birthday. :) )

I had a wonderful birthday this year, and am again humbled by how much I am loved by those in my life.  I'm looking forward to another great year in my awesome life!

Live The Life: Week Eight

Can I just say how much happier I've been this week?  I actually lost more weight during the week than I did the last two weeks of the diet portion of Live The Life!  Now, my birthday celebration over the weekend kind of screwed up my weigh-in on Monday, but trust me...it was a good week!

I've been working really hard not to be hard on myself.  And I think it's paying off!  My measurements don't reflect a change, but I've felt so much thinner this week.  And anytime I start to go over my mental list of areas that need work, I remind myself that I'm living healthy and that's what matters.  I've tried to notice the parts of myself that I like, and that I'm seeing a marked improvement in.  And I'm feeling so much better!

I've realized that if I wanted to, I could probably look like the women that started this Live The Life program.  One of them has had a few children, though you'd never know it looking at her.  I could probably get there too, if I made it that much of a priority.  But I really don't feel that passionate about it!  I don't want to spend 2 hours a day, every day, working out.  I want to enjoy my food...without the use of a food scale.  

And it's interesting, even as I'm weighing myself through Week 9, I'm still losing more weight!  And I'm feeling great.  And more than the numbers, that's what matters.

WEEK EIGHT RESULTS

.8 lbs lost (total ~ 15.2 lbs)

0 inches off my waist (total ~ 5 inches)

1/2 inch off my hips (total ~ 4 1/4 inches)

6 Months

17 lbs. 9 oz. ~ 60th percentile

28 1/2 inches ~ 97th percentile

Head circumference: 17 3/4 inches ~ 85th percentile

I'm getting a little worried about Johnny's hearing.  I keep telling him to stop growing up, and clearly he can't hear me.

Six months already!  That's half a year!  Before I know it, he's going to be one and I won't have my snuggly little baby boy anymore.  Ugh, that makes my heart ache!  I just love this little guy.  I seriously want him to be my baby forever.

But he just keeps growing up!  And, admittedly, he does get more fun.  He's so interactive right now.  He loves playing with anything and everything and everyone!  Most of the time, anyway.  Sometimes he just wants his Mama!  I love that.  :)

Johnny has gone through a lot of changes this month.  He's become mobile, and he's cut his first two teeth!  And boy, are they sharp little teeth.  He's my first baby to make me bleed.  Ouch.  I don't know if it's all these changes in his life or what, but he's not sleeping like he used to.  He wakes up a few times a night now, and sometimes won't go back to sleep unless he's in bed with me.  Part of me suspects he just likes to be with me.

Johnny was finally discharged from physical therapy this month.  Yay!  It was getting a little pricey.  :)  And he's looking great, according to Dr. Edralin.  At his check-up yesterday, Dr. Edralin commented on how long he is.  I was concerned that he had dropped so significantly on the weight growth curve, but the doctor didn't seem worried.  He reminded me that all Johnny's activity is burning more calories than it used to, which makes sense.  Looks like he's going to be like his sisters...tall and skinny! :)  

Here's a look at what has changed, and stayed the same, with our Little Man:

*Wears size 3 diapers

*Wears size 3 shoes, when he wears them... :)

*Wears mostly 9 month clothes, but is working into 12 month

*Rolls EVERYWHERE!

*Is able to scoot and shimmy anywhere he wants to go, in any direction.  He's almost crawling!

*Seems to prefer sleeping on his tummy now.

*Got his first two teeth!

*Loves his oatmeal with fruit juice, as well as sweet potatoes and bananas

*Still loves to give Mama kisses

*Loves sitting in his high chair and playing while Mama cooks or cleans

*Is able to sit on his own for a good minute or so before he tips to one side

*Starting to exhibit some stranger anxiety, and gets really anxious if he can't get back to Mama

*Loves playing on the floor and rolling around with Claire and Sophie

*Likes to pull his sisters' hair! :)

You're an absolute joy to have in our life, John-Boy!  Now, listen to Mama and stop growing up so fast.  I mean it!

Claire's First Talk

Claire gave her first talk in Primary on Sunday.  She did such an amazing job!  I was so proud of her.  She spoke loudly and clearly, and wasn't even nervous a little bit.  She's been waiting since she gave the prayer in Primary about a month ago.  She was SO upset that her assignment to give the prayer wasn't an assignment to give the talk!  But since I make the assignments, I had to give it some time so it didn't look like I was playing favorites.  :)  I love Claire's enthusiasm for the gospel!  She was so excited to have Daddy help her prepare and give her talk.  I have to be honest, I stood in the back of the room and cried.  That was my baby up there, teaching her friends the precious truths of the gospel.  When did she grow up?  Time is just going by so fast.

Here's what Claire had to say:

My Heavenly Father has a plan for me.  We can learn about this plan in the scriptures.  When I read the Book of Mormon every night with my family, I learn more about Heavenly Father's plan.

We all lived with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ before we came to this earth.  Heavenly Father sent us to this earth so that we could show him that we would be obedient to his commandments.  Heavenly Father has given me a family to help me learn how to be obedient.  I know that if I am obedient and repent I can live with Heavenly Father and Jesus and my family forever.

I know that Heavenly Father and Jesus love me.  I am grateful for Primary so that I can learn what I need to do to return to live with them.  I love my family.  I know this church is true.  And I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Live The Life: Week Seven

Well, folks, I'm going to be honest.  I've kind of jumped ship.  But only half way! :)

After really struggling through Week Six, I realized that I wasn't going to be able to keep up with the strict eating.  And not even so much because I couldn't have what I "wanted".  It was the timing thing that started to kill me.  My life is getting busier now that Johnny is getting older.  We have doctor's appointments and errands, kids don't take naps, people call and I want to chat.  Turns out, my life isn't so conducive to eating on a strict schedule right now.

That being said, I'm no longer keeping the menu part of Live The Life.  But I am eating on The Challenge.  Only 3 free points a week, and no eating after 8:30.  And I'm actually able to do this so much better since doing Live The Life, because I understand portions so much better.  I've also kicked up the work-outs a bit, by adding a bit more weight to my strength training and adding more time to my cardio.  

Things have been better!  I'm still fighting the mental fight, and I imagine that will last a while.  Last week was a wash, but I weighed myself again this morning and was down more than a pound from yesterday's weigh-in.  :)  I'm going to keep doing these posts for the remainder of the 12 weeks, because I feel like I ought to.  So, we'll see how things shape up at next week's weigh-in!

WEEK SEVEN RESULTS

0 lbs lost (total ~ 14.4 lbs)

0 inches off my waist (total ~ 5 inches)

0 inches off my hips (total ~ 3 3/4 inches)