Crafts and The Crawler-videos

I started this post last week.  I made the pumpkins for my grandparent's 60th Anniversary party this weekend. I got the idea from this blog- the post was 2 Octobers ago, but I remembered it. H is for my grandparent's last name. I just used modge podge and scrap book paper. I did spray paint the middle pumpkin white because I could only find one white pumpkin at the time (right).

I also made one for Miss B. Well, I said Anika made it for her :)  The 60th anniversary is the diamond anniversary (Andrew informed me of this). In my opinion it should be way before 60 years!! I cant believe I'm supposed to wait that long!? But, we had this huge fake diamond ring so Andrew said I should put it in the pumpkin like it is a ring box :) Cute idea I thought. I also put some crystals on to make a 60.  The crystals are actually swarovski crystals left over from my wedding veil! ha- my mom wasn't exactly thrilled when I asked for the crystals to put on a pumpkin but I barely used any.

My ring for special occasions ;)

I got some stuff to make Anika one too, but haven't had time yet. Just find a font you want. Print it out in size 350 ish and then use that as a pattern to cut out the letter or number on pretty paper. I am not good at cutting and even I did it!  I used a foam brush to paint the modge podge.

Oh, and I put a few on my phone :) haha. I could have done better on that.

This was from last week when my friend and her daughter came over to play.

Anika in a knit sweater and hat my old roomie gave her. Super cute.

See that little double chin? My babe is finally pudging up??

THis past weekend was PACKED FULL. We had plans Friday night (Twins' 1st birthday). Saturday we had an all day New Zealand family day. We watched Andrew and his bro play a rugby game and then went to a Hangi (Where they cook food in the ground). There were about 300 people there-kiwis and their families from around New England. AND, we met a guy from Andrew's home town that actually worked for Andrew's mom 30 years ago! He didn't know his mom had passed away, but he said she turned his life around and got him on the right track. His mom was kind of a social worker. It was emotional to hear and to meet this guy in little old New Hampshire. Small world I tell ya.
Sunday we had my grandparent's anniversary party all day  and we were there early to help set up. Then, Monday we went to the fair and Anika rode a pony!!  Pictures from this weekend will have to wait for another post.
We got this video of A crawling, but even since then, she has picked up her speed. She is ON the go and has me on my toes. I have her in her high chair eating snacks so I can write this post :)

ps. the ugly bathroom floor came with the house.

She is in the dog bowl all the time and as I finish this up, she is climbing up the stool I am sitting on...then she will let go because she thinks she can stand alone, but she cant.

Baby Food Making, Babies in Wigs, A's Passport, and Cell phone pic Dump

Thanks for the sweet comments/emails on the last post.  Sometimes I can really see the weight coming off and other times I look at myself and think Yuck, I still have such a long way to go!

I have been making Anika's baby food since she was 4 months old.  I started with swiss chard and spinach. Then zucchini, summer squash, carrots.  (Many from our gardens). The book I have said to start with palatable foods like carrots and sweet potatoes. Carrots and sweet potatoes are SWEETER veggies. I decided to start Anika on the less tasty veggies instead. . My theory was- why give her the sweet/good stuff first?  My book and the doctor said to start fruits after  a week of veggies. I waited almost a month.  However, I did give Anika prunes from the beginning to help her bowel movements as she transitioned to all the solid foods. She still has prunes every couple days. I steam them and then put them in my mini food processor. At this point, Anika can handle chunks, so  I have been leaving small chunks. If I give Anika avocado or banana, I just mush it up or cut up pieces and put on her tray for her to pick up. BUT, she would rather BE FED by US! So, I am trying to get her to pick it up herself. It is funny that she is so independent in some ways, but when it comes to eating- she wants us to do it for her.

Making food is so easy.  I  make it because I know HOW it is cooked, what is in it,  and I give her what we eat, so its super easy. Well, we don't eat prunes, but most everything else she eats, we eat.  I have made her apples and pears from our own trees. They are ONE step harder because you have to peel them first, and I don't like peeling :)  I also have to peel  sweet potatoes. Most of the veggies I make don't need peeling though.

My mom recently asked if I wanted a baby food cookbook she saw by some famous lady. I looked at the site and decided I don't really NEED a book. I already have one book and I think I do a decent job coming up with my own ideas.  I also recently learned that Anika can have some spices, so I have added some of my home grown basil to some foods.  I also add some fish oil sometimes...BUT, I eat so much fish and Anika nurses, so it may not be necessary. Ugh, speaking of fish, I just realized I may be eating too much fish, therefore passing on mercury to Anika. I need to talk to someone about this.

What I did see while looking on the site my mom sent me was that store bought baby foods (including organic brands) have a shelf life of 2 years.  "In order to achieve this shelf life, the food needs to be sterilized. This is accomplished by heating it to very high temperatures to ensure food safety. While necessary for shelf life this process kills vitamins, nutrients, taste, color, and aroma in the process. Homemade baby food is higher in nutrients, tastes far better than store bought, and has the enticing aromas that will make your baby excited about eating"  source

Ok, I can agree with the taste. Anika has had a few store bought foods and I think the ones I make are much tastier.  ANd, to date- Anika eats everything. This weekend Andrew gave her some plain scrambled eggs. My book said they were safe at her age as long as they were cooked well.  Some sources say to hold off on eggs until 1 year for allergy reasons, but recent studies say the opposite.

I do choose to feed her organic foods most of the time. I Know my mom sneaks in foods that are not organic and I don't freak out about it. Someone tried to give her a taste of ice cream the other day and I would rather she not have sugar or salt AT ALL for at least a year or 2. Obviously, there is natural sugars in fruits, so that is fine. I also have given Anika lentils and quinoa. She has had some chicken as well. I basically mush up what we eat. If soft enough, I don't even mush it up first.

This is my steamer I use most nights and have for many years.

I also use this one sometimes- it is an electric one.

Then, how I mush it all up in 2 seconds.

I have been using cleaned out baby jars to store my homemade food in (in the fridge), but I recently bought these (below). They can go in the freezer and store the food. I had been storing the extra food in ice cube trays, but these are much better. I can grab one and toss it in Anika's lunch bag in the morning. I am not sure if regular baby food jars can go in the freezer but I never tried.  The new jars are made by Wean Green! I bought mine on Amazon because I get free shipping on most things (probably because I buy enough from there).  Also, I only keep food in the fridge for 3 days-if I make a big batch the extra goes in the freezer.

For snacks, Miss B and my mom were giving Anika cheerios, but I got these for her instead-Gluten free Whole O's. Same idea.

She has also been eating these for a while because my friend gave me a ton (a client of hers)-

Organic Broccoli, Kale and Cheddar cheese munchies. Both of these snacks help with her hand eye coordination (which needs practice) and she actually CHEWS them with her 2 front teeth but if she didnt have teeth they are ok to gum.  Speaking of teeth and gums, I got Anika a baby tooth brush and started brushing her 2 teeth so she gets used to it. Also, I wasnt sure if I SHOULD be brushing them...so I just decided better safe than sorry.

And, this weekend I let her have some yogurt melts.

-

Here are some photos from my cell phone the past week.

At the store. Some ahole parked in 2 spots. THis store is usually CROWDED so this could have been really annoying, but it wasn't crowded that day. Note- the out of state license plate- NY. Figures. haha.

Last week, I FORGOT my pump bottles on the drying rack at home. I had ONE pump top, so I had to pump one at a time and let the milk go into my water bottle. It was clean but it was a pain in the ass.

Friday night at dinner. Ryan and Andrew sat on one side of the table and I sat on the other with the high chair...so It looked like they were the couple with their baby and I was the single mom with mine.  But then Andrew took Anika from the high chair/me and I looked like the loner :)  Baby Trin was an angel at dinner. Baby Anika was a devil. Oh, did I mention Friday is the day I took off from work and didnt leave home (except the gym in the AM) and I didnt enforce naps...and boy oh boy did I get payback for that at dinner time. Now, I know why stay at home moms make a big deal about naps. On weekends we are rarely home, so she naps in the car usually. On Friday, my friends and kids came over all day and A only had one nap. whoopsy.

Sunday, A and I went to visit my Gram since our apple picking plans got put on hold due to rain all weekend.  She rode on the rocking horse.

She played the piano.

She tried on Gram's wig!

Ok, this one is kinda scary. We should get better pics with my real camera- not cell phone camera. 

BUT, HERE IS ME at 6 Months in Gram's wig. Gram wore a wig for a while  in the early 80's because she was in a bad accident.  She had head surgery and had her hair shaved off.

HERE IS LITTLE ASHLEY in a wig.

My mom scanned this pic for me and didnt do a great job.

Well, HELLO!

And me without a wig. My mom was just telling me that I was so much taller than Anika at this age.  Hmm..maybe Anika will be petite, or maybe she will shoot up in height at some point?

Um ya- I walked around the corner and saw her at the wood stove. Luckily we dont have it on yet. We have a gate to put around it this winter. By the way- that swing on the right can Ddefinitely go into storage. She is over that.

Daddy is away this week :(  SO, this was our bed this morning. Piri took his place and Anika came into bed at 6:30 when she woke up to eat.  She slept right through last night- 2nd night in a row. I dont want to jinx it though...

OH, but Look what came in the mail for Anika last week....

All ready to travel abroad!! She got her passport.

Ha, I didnt get the picture in time, but she was sitting on this little cup and didnt even know it. She leaned forward when I got the pic, but she was RIGHT on it.

I will be back later this week with my awesome crafts. I meant to do it in this post, but it got too long...as it often does :)

Weekend Review: Wedding last weekend

Last weekend we went to a wedding. I meant to post about it last week, but just got busy.  The wedding took place at a ski area/golf course.  Andrew and I met at a wedding at this SAME location 7 years ago (EXACTLY).  We  had not attended a wedding at this location since the one 7 years ago.  I wrote about how we met IN THIS POST.  Last wekeend, I wore my bridesmaid dress from my friend Carolyn's wedding that took place last October in Chicago. I was pregnant then...and the dress fits me now. The only dress that fits me now. We broke the zipper a couple weeks ago, but I got it fixed in time :)

I was asked to be a BM in the wedding we attended last weekend, but I ended up declining for several reasons.  BUT the Bride is a VERY good friend and very dear to my heart.  The bridal party wore different color dresses. It looked great and while I watched them walk down the aisle, I kind of wished I was wearing an awesome bright colored dress :)

The bride, Anna, and her dad. There was a lot of tie dye going on at the wedding and even her dad wore tie dye :) Anna gave one of her kidneys to her dad a few years ago.  How special is that?

My mom was actually the Justice of the Peace up there :) My mom wore a colorful dress too to fit in!

The groom is also a friend of mine. I was on ski team with him in middle school and high school.

Their dog was included too! :)  She sat up at the alter with them and was such a good girl.

The men wore coordinating ties with the girls' dresses.

My mom and dad. I have no idea what my dad was doing.

My mom and good friend T.  T's wife is pregnant and we talked baby stuff :) Another friend and her husband were at our table too. Their daughter is 3 weeks older than Anika.  T and his wife, Jen,  live down in MA, but his parents live right near the wedding location.  T's parents watched Anika until 8 PM  and then I got her and passed her off to my parents to bring home with them.  Andrew and I slept over at T's parents house so we could go out to the after party after the reception :)  Jen was our DD :)  I was pregnant and the DD at T and Jen's wedding, so it all comes around. haha.  Also, funny story. At the wedding 7 years ago when I met Andrew- T was at his parents house visiting. I called him and told him he needed to come pick me up from the wedding I was at because I was drunk and that the best man was super hot and I was going to make an ass of myself. The best man was Andrew :)  T came to get me, but then he was invited to stay  too! So, between T hitting on the women there (one was Andrew's sister, I think!),  we danced our asses off and Andrew thought T was my boyfriend!!!   T and I have always been good friends and he also lived down in Boston. We lived together for a while after I got back from NZ studying abroad,  and before Andrew moved over here! Actually, I was planning on living with him until Andrew moved to America, BUT T's other roommate (guy) didn't want to live with me. We had a SMALL history from years prior when I went to visit T at his college. A history I had put behind me, but apparently he didnt!  He figured if he was going to live with a girl, he should live with his girlfriend. So, that roomie moved in with his gf and T moved in with his (his now wife) and I got a place with some awesome girlfriends. It all worked out well.  

You may recall, at Anna's "bridal shower" we tie dyed sheets to be table runners at the wedding. I didn't get a good picture of the tables...but you can kind of see here and below. She also used some of the tie dye sheets to wrap up some locally made soaps (the favors).

The MOH is a friend of mine, but she didn’t even really do a toast!!  She said like 2 words and I was VERY disappointed. She has the ability to talk, is not shy and can be really funny. She said she would have gotten too emotional if she gave a toast, but I thought it was pretty shitty.  The Best man was shy so he did a slide show of pics.  The toasts are usually my favorite part of wedding receptions...but didn't really happen at this wedding.  They didn't even do a champagne toast and we all had champagne still on the table, so one of the groom's friends at my table got up and did the toast...Thank God so we could drink our champagne! haha.
Oh, by the way- the Photographer that did Anika's newborn photos was the photographer at this wedding.  Remember that drama? Ya- well, she completely ignored me- like would not even smile at me or be friendly as a professional!!  Even when we ran into each other, I gave a smile - and she looked away. Also when ANika got there for me to give to my parents, the bride and photographer were walking down the stairs. Anika smiled big at them and the bride obvi stopped to say hi and the photag just squeezed by to get away. The bride even said she felt the tension, which is just ridiculous and I felt bad for her. Owell. I feel bad that the lady is THAT hurt, but I was surprised she reacted that way.

Annoying photo bomber.

 Kate and Me.  Kate was also at the wedding 7 years ago (My sil and bil's). The wedding she thought I gave her mean looks at, but I had no idea who she was back then :)  Also, In my post last week, I called Kate's husband Jason. At the wedding, "jason" told me he didn't like that name and he doesnt think he looks like a Jason. I changed his name in my post because his real name is original and I dont know any other people with his name. I like to change the names of people on here who are not close friends.  Then, I got mad that Kate let "Jason" read my blog! Whatevs.

Good friend who lives in Oregon now. He moved to Oregon the summer after my freshmen year of college.  I took 10 days off from my job and travelled out there with him. ROAD TRIP! Another friend moved out there with him, so it was 3 of us. We camped the whole way. I got to see the Badlands, The Corn Palace, Grand Canyon, Hoover Dam, Vegas, a few Dennys...and so many other cool things. I flew out of San Francisco after we stayed a night with my college friend who lived there.

I didnt really get to drink until after 8 (after Anika went with my parents).  I play catch up pretty fast :)  I didnt get too bad though, so thats good!  At Anna's bach party (The post is HERE) I got WAY out of control...so I'm glad I kept my shit together this time :)

If you cant tell by every one's SHINY Faces- IT WAS SUPER HOT IN THE THERE!! There is no AC, and at one point I had sweat dripping down my back AND my face. Everyone was making fun of me when it was dripping down my face. My makeup was running. So gross. T said he was sweating too but UM- WAS His body busy making milk? No. Mine was...so I had a bit more excuse, right? :)

There were some people oddly dressed.  OR, a person who took his shirt off ALL TOGETHER!!! Yes- this is for real!

By the way, the wedding took place at the same place as my 10 year reunion.  After the wedding reception we went to a guest house the bride and groom rented.

Where the bride did a keg stand before getting out of her wedding dress! Andrew was holding the tap for her and he had NO idea how. He didn't even know what a keg stand was!! Must be an American thing?

This is the 3 of us who did the trip out west 10 years ago.  Every time we are together (which is rarely) I make them do a photo. We have all gone in different directions, but it was such an amazing trip for me that I will never forget.  We had so many laughs and got to experience so much.

And J (the friend who lives in Oregon now) even did FIREWORKS at the after party!

--

By the way,

Last week, I was down another 1.5 pounds at WW. Total of 14.8 pounds down since joining WW and 43.3 pounds since having Anika.  I took Friday off to spend with Anika and my friend and her baby who came to visit. I think I may have gained a few pounds this weekend. WHOOPS.  We were supposed to go apple picking in MA with a friend and her family this weekend, but yesterday rained...then today rained :(    I worked on some crafts though that I will post later in the week.  We went to dinner Friday night and then to someone's house for dinner Sat. night. And, I ate some of Andrew's junk food that he is supposed to keep in his car. No self control this weekend.