Rob's Staycation

Rob had Wednesday, Thursday and Friday off last week. As I mentioned in my last post, we were planning on staying home and working in the yard. First though, he spent Wednesday finishing up the front porch. He still has one small part to finish up but it's only because we can't decide what we want to do. It is fully functional now though and looks great. I spent a few hours on Wednesday like this:



I hated cleaning the leaves out of that bush because it is full of thorns. I have scratches all over my hands and arms from it. Rob put in edging and built me some boxes for my raised planter beds. He wasn't able to finish off either of those projects because it rained a lot on Saturday and Sunday. That was okay though because we had a chance to actually have some fun and watch some movies. I tried to help in the yard while I could- mainly when Rex was napping. I got a lot of shrubs/plants/bushes pruned and filled up a 3 yard dumpster.



So far we have filled up one at least that size every spring which is fine because I love all our landscaping. Unfortunately, we discovered that it is not a good idea to plant perennials until Mothers' Day weekend so we had to hold off on doing that. However, the tulips out front are looking really good right now.



For some reason, almost all the tulips so far are red. I have two yellow ones and the rest are red. Last year, they were a mix of red, purple, white and yellow. I don't understand why they change. They were in the cheapo, jumbo bag from Sam's Club or Lowe's though so I don't expect too much. The fancier tulips I have seem the same as they were last year though they have not bloomed yet. Most of the daffodils and hyacinth have already come and gone by now. Finally, Rob had to mow the yard for the first time this year- here he is.

Happy Easter and Everything Else

We had a nice Easter last weekend- I meant to put this picture up last Sunday but oops, I forgot. So here it is now.



Although there was plenty of candy in his basket, only the book was for him. Rob took most of the candy to work and I kept a little stash for myself. I intended to buy him a couple more books but ran out of time. Thankfully, he doesn't know that mommy screwed up. I think the new book was mainly for me because I have most of his books memorized at this point and I needed something new in the mix. He probably appreciates it too.

Rex was 10 months old yesterday- Wow. It seems even crazier when I realized that his first birthday is in just two months! We're not going to do a big party because big crowds in his house kind of freak him out (as I learned when I hosted Bunco). Also, with the economy the way it is and us living on one income, I don't really see the point of spending a bunch of money on something he won't remember or even care about. Finally we don't have any family in the area so there really aren't a lot of people to celebrate with. I'm pretty sure Rob's parents will be here for the occasion so we'll celebrate with them here at home. We have friends I could invite but again, Rex is not a big fan of having lots of people in his house. I understand that lots of parents have big parties and I think that's just fine for them. It just doesn't make a lot of sense in our situation. I'll get him a little cake to thrash and we'll have a good time.

Rex got a little haircut last week. Rob and I did it ourselves and it took both of us so I have no pictures of the event. It was growing down over his ears and the hair right in front was also getting way too long. He had some crazy long hairs growing out of the top of his head that we trimmed up too. I almost cried because babies don't get haircuts, big boys do. He's growing up too fast. But his hair looks a lot better now so I'm glad we trimmed it up.

I have been busy designing plans for our backyard. Specifically there is one very large bed area that doesn't have much planted in it. It's a wonderful sunny part of the yard and I have been really anxious to get some plants in the ground. I picked out a Double Delight hybrid tea rose and we planted that yesterday. I have picked up a few magazines recently for backyard design and with the new book Rob got me for my birthday, I have been on a roll. I have also gotten several seed packets of different varieties and have even started some seeds already.



Rob has been planning on taking some time off this week and we thought we would take a roadtrip somewhere. However, we decided to stay home and work in the yard instead (mainly because it's kind of tough to travel with Rex at this point- when he can eat food from a restaurant, our lives will get so much easier). I have my list of plants to buy at the nursery and my budget all made out. Hopefully this is the last time you will see a picture of our backyard looking like this!

Nice Weather = Projects

Now that the weather is nice, Rob's busy with his projects again. Our salmon-colored fence and deck in the front yard have made Rob crazy since the day we moved in. There was also a matching salmon-colored screen door that he replaced last fall. The paint on the fence is peeling and the deck had some structural issues so they did need to be fixed or replaced. Here is what it looked like.



It doesn't look too bad really but as I said, it was a mess up close and the deck had some boards that were rotted out. Rob thought that this would be a nice simple project for him and his dad to work on while his parents were visiting. So here they are on Day 1, ripping up the steps and deck.



A lot of progress was made on Days 1 and 2.



However, on Day 3, there was a big problem.



They were unable to continue, obviously, and Pop left before they got a chance to work on it anymore. Rob's kept at it for the past two weeks and we now have something that looks like a very nice deck.



He still has to finish up the step and stain everything but he is getting close to being done. I'm so proud of him- he has worked so hard on it and it looks great!

Movies We Must See

We missed a lot of movies last summer. We were busy with something, what was it...



Oh yes, having a baby. We both really wanted to see the latest Indiana Jones movie and there were a few others I would have liked to see too though I can't remember them all. This summer looks even better though and we definitely can't miss these.

Wolverine- At the top of the list and less than one month away is Wolverine. I love, love, love all the X-Men movies and have been looking forward to this movie for a few years now.

Star Trek- Rob really is looking forward to this far more than me but I would like to see it too. I have never been too into Star Trek but Rob's getting me into it more and more. It helps to have someone around to explain it all. I have watched most of the episodes from the Enterprise series and we are working our way through all the movies. Next up is Star Trek III: The Search for Spock which I think we'll watch tonight. Friday night tv sucks.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince- I resisted reading these books or watching these movies for a long time. I'm not sure why now. I am totally a fan and love both the books and movies. I may be seeing this movie on my own which is fine.

I didn't really think I was a nerd but now that I see my "Must-See Movie List", I am a little concerned!

The Circle of Life

Last week, I celebrated another birthday. We had pizza- I really wanted that because I have been keeping to my diet and workouts faithfully and have not had pizza for quite a while. Rob also got me a little pink champagne cake which was so yummy and very thoughtful of him.



The circle of life continues on for me and also for everything else. Alas, this week we are in mourning for the passing of a dear friend- the bouncy seat. It took all the abuse Rex has dished out for the past 9 1/2 months and finally had all it could take yesterday. I heard the sound of metal snapping and looked over and saw Rex with his butt on the ground and he was laughing- he thought it was so funny! So then we were both laughing and I told Rob on the phone and then we all had a good laugh.



When Rob got home an hour later, we rushed out to Target to get a suitable replacement. The new one goes up to the toddler stage and holds a 40 pound child so we should be good for a while now. He seems to like it pretty well and likes the new toys on it. I think he is still a little confused about where his old one is though.



In other Rex developments, he is now taking his naps in his crib in his room. It turns out this was excellent timing since he used to nap in the dearly departed bouncy seat. Rob's parents were here for a visit and I just didn't want to be tiptoeing around him while he napped in the living room anymore. So I decided last week that it was time for naps to be taken in his room and in his bed. The first two days he put up a bit of a fight but it's been going pretty well since. And I am enjoying the freedom that I get with this arrangement. I used to rock the seat with my foot, close the drapes in the living room and keep it very quiet. Now I can watch tv, talk on the phone and do all kinds of things. I could even nap (like I plan on doing this afternoon) and blog (like I'm doing now)!

P.S. - Happy 3 Year Anniversary to Brent and Nanette!

Rex's Top Ten

Last night after we had put Rex to bed for the night, Rob and I came up with Rex's Top Ten Favorite Things. Here it is:

10. Going on Walks
9. Screeching
8. Pooping
7. His Blocks
6. Jumperoo
5. Bouncy Seat
4. Food
3. Daddy
2. Mommy
1. The TV Remote

I'm sure Rob and I can be switched on the list depending on who he likes better at that particular moment but I'm pretty sure he would go for the tv remote over either one of us. He loves that thing! We now call it "The Precious" because he is like Gollum in The Lord of the Rings. Once he gets it, it goes directly into his mouth. It looks like there is a puppy in the house because of all the teeth marks on it. No puppy- just one crazy, remote-obsessed nine month old baby.

In other Rex news, still no actual crawling. He does this bizarre thing that is sort of like crawling and it does propel him forward but I'm afraid calling it crawling would not be entirely correct. He can clap his hands now which is a lot of fun. Another thing he recently learned to do is click his tongue against the roof of his mouth. So for the last few mornings we have heard lots of clapping and tongue clicking when he wakes up and is still laying in his crib. It's very funny. We are trying to get him to do high five and give kisses but he's not quite there yet. He loves to do the high five but you still have to help him with that. As for the kisses, he starts to kiss but then ends up trying to bite my cheek instead of kissing it. It's really funny too and we will keep working on it until he gets it. He has his nine month check-up tomorrow morning so we'll see how he is doing size-wise then.

As for Rob and I, we haven't been up to much lately. Rob's been working a lot outside with pruning everything and getting the lawn ready to go for the summer. All my bulbs have been jumping out of the ground lately which is a little scary because it is still a little early for them. There is definitely a chance for snow still for a few more weeks and if that happens, my little tulips, daffodils, hyacinth and giant allium are going to be toast. Oh well- at least I have the pictures from last year so I can see how beautiful they are. I have been going to the gym 4-5 times a week for the last two weeks. It's tough during the week because I have to get up at 5:00 a.m. to go but it feels really good to be getting back in shape the way I used to be. I think I'm starting to get past that initial phase where I have to make myself go and getting to the addiction phase where I have to go. Although things have been a little slow for us lately, it's about to get pretty busy. I think all of us have at least one appointment for something this week and my birthday is coming up next week. We also have some visitors next week from California (Rob's parents) and I'm very much looking forward to seeing them. Rex and I have not seen them since the beginning of October and Rob hasn't seen them since the end of October so it's been a while for all of us. I just wanted to mention that one of my appointments is to donate blood and I think all of you reading this should go do that too if you are able. It's a good thing to do and you have to eat twinkies and/or ho-hos after. It's a requirement so you can't feel bad about it.

Feeding Time at the Zoo

Feeding Rex gets to be more and more of an adventure with every passing day. We tried a biter biscuit a week or two ago.



Although he took a few nibbles at it, I discovered that he would rather bang it on the tray than actually eat it.



The sippy cup doesn't always work for him so we tried to pass some water to him using a straw. He doesn't drink out of the straw- we put the straw in the cup and get water in it then put our finger over the end then let the water dribble into his mouth. It didn't work out so good but I think he may like snorkling with his dad though someday.



Rex has a similar trick with his spoon. Now that he has two teeth on top to match the two on the bottom, he likes to catch things between the teeth and hold on. I think he is part crocodile because it is impossible to get that spoon loose sometimes.



Finally, he has learned to hold his bottle all by himself while he drinks it. What a treat for me!



So those are Rex's latest accomplishments in the world of food. He is eating meats now though we have to disguise it in with the vegetables because he can not stand the taste of the meat by itself. Please don't let him know what we are up to!

The Latest

It was so beautiful here last week- sunny and warm and so nice. This was the high for Thursday:



I got out the stroller, dusted it all off and got it cleaned up and we hit the road. Well, actually the sidewalk- I wouldn't take my baby for a walk in the middle of the road!



We actually took two walks that day- one in the afternoon and then Rob joined us for a walk in the evening. The lovely weather came to an end though the next day. It rained a bunch (A BUNCH!) Friday night, yesterday and was still going this morning. Unfortunately, sometime around lunchtime today, it started looking like this:



Ugh. Oh well- we picked up a couple of movies at the library on Saturday so we had those to watch. Rob picked Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and I got Send Me No Flowers. I couldn't get into his movie so he's finishing it now while I do this. I don't think he'll be too into my Rock Hudson-Doris Day flick so I'm planning on watching that tomorrow while he is at work.

One of the bad things about moving to a new place is that you miss the restaurants back home. Mainly it is In-N-Out and mexican food for me but I also miss Versailles' Cuban food in LA. Not that I got to go there a lot but a few times a year, certainly. I decided last week to make some Lechon Asado for myself since I have no trips to LA planned anytime soon. Using parts of different recipes I found online, I came up with a decent version of a Versailles plate of roasted pork, black beans, rice and fried plantains.



The owners of Versailles don't need to worry though- their Cuban food is still far superior. Except for maybe the black beans. I liked mine better actually. But it was nice to have something similar out here.

Rex is doing great. I wrote a whole other post just about him before I wrote this one and I'll put it up in another day or two. Until then, here is a picture of Rex and his mommy.

No Excuses

Last time I had a good excuse for not posting for a while but that is not the case now. I have no excuses. I wasn't really in the mood for it and now I have so much to share it's overwhelming. So first, a little about me for a change. I got a new cell phone that I am pretty excited about. My old one would just randomly turn off and on whenever it felt like it so it was time for something new. By the way, that phone was the replacement one because the previous one just started vibrating one day and would not stop unless you took the battery out. No Nokia phone for me this time. I'm getting used to all the features on the new one but I really like it so far. And it stays turned on so double bonus. I went to a meeting that the city was holding for the development of property maintenance standards and it was kind of fun to be in the planning world again and as a citizen this time. Best of all, I got to listen for a while and say what I wanted to say but then I didn't have to stay and listen to the crazies. And I could roll my eyes at them if I wanted to. One lady wanted to outlaw lighter fluid because she didn't like the smell and "people use too much of it to start their barbecues." Wow- that's pretty crazy and I heard quite a lot of crazy stuff in 7 years working in city planning. I miss it, but I love being home with Rex. I was going to try and get on the Planning Commission here but at the last minute decided not to because it's just not the right time for our family. I will one day though- unless I end up working there.

Rob and I had a very nice anniversary. We had to take a picture because it really made us laugh. On Feb 2, 2007, we were in Carmel getting married. On Feb 2, 2008, we went back to Carmel for anniversary. We went to the beach where we were married and ate dinner at the restaurant where our reception was held. This year?



Oh yes- we went to the Red Lobster that is about three miles from our house. AND we used gift cards and coupons. Seriously though, we really did have a nice time and it only cost us 5 bucks. A friend came to the house and stayed with Rex and we had a good time being out and about all by ourselves. It was only the third time we've been out to eat in a restaurant since Rex was born so we enjoy the very rare chance to do that. He hates the carrier so there is no way to take him to a restaurant until he gets just a little bigger and can sit in a highchair and eat with us.

Rex's latest thing is blowing and spitting while he is eating. Super. When I tell him no, he can not do that while he eats, he just gives me the cutest smile and giggles and makes it very hard for me to keep a straight face. I'm sure I will toughen up soon though because I'm getting tired of cleaning it all up. He is not crawling yet but he keeps working on it. He gets his legs going pretty good but just can't get anywhere with it. He has figured out how to roll over on his side and wiggle forward then he rolls back on his stomach. He keeps repeating that to move forward which is a lot of work and doesn't get him too far. Very funny to watch though! He has been drinking out of a sippy cup for a few days now. We tried with water first and he screamed and just got so excited. When we tried to give him water in his bottle, he flipped out and hated it. I guess he was expecting milk/formula with the bottle so that was why that did not work. But he loves water and apple juice out of his cup!



This post has gone on for a while now so I guess I should wrap it up. I'm supposed to host Bunco again tomorrow night since my turn in December got snowed out. So of course, there is snow again in the forecast for tomorrow. I hope it doesn't get canceled again!

Behind The Scenes

I am not a bad blogger- just one busy working on trying to better her blog! I've created a website on my computer but I'm trying to figure that whole process out of getting a domain and then publishing my site. And Rob doesn't want me to spend any money. Hmm. I had one plan and it did not work out. I'm working on the next plan which is pretty labor intensive but I have high hopes. I've never saved any of my 161 postings (now 162) and so I'm having to go through and save them all. I will be saving them all from now on though, I promise, because this is a pain in the butt! Has anybody out there ever "reformatted" their digital camera? If you choose to "reformat" your camera, you will lose all your pictures. You can ask my dad about it- he's done it. Twice. I don't know what I'm doing really and I'm afraid of doing something like that where I end up losing the last two years' work in the process. So.. there's been lots of work going on with the blog, but it's all been behind the scenes stuff!

Here's a picture of Rex from about two minutes ago-



He's doing really great these days. He's totally a pro at rolling over in any direction. He sits up pretty well on his own but you still have to be close by because he will start to lean too far in one direction and then fall over. He hasn't yet grasped the "it's time to stop because I will fall over if I go any further" concept. He does not seem to have any interest in crawling yet which is okay with me. I'm sure he'll be cruising around in no time and I will really have my hands full then! You can see his bottom two teeth in the picture there and he's been working on getting the top two in for the last two weeks. The first two just popped right through but this next set of two are taking forever which has made for one crabby little dude. Not crabby all the time but a little here and there. Rob has been sick the last week- he's feeling pretty good today and seems to be over it- but that made for two cranky dudes in the house. And that made me pretty cranky because I was trying to help them and they would both just crab at me. I'm glad things seem to be looking up today.

The weather was really nice this weekend (highs in the 40s) but it's getting a little cold again for the next few days. Last year, it was just bad-cold all the time. This winter we seem to be getting some nice breaks in between which makes the bad days a lot more tolerable. In the last few weeks since I blogged, we had a record-setting cold day where the low was -29 and it was -45 with the wind chill. Brrr.

Today is our two-year anniversary. It's been an eventful two years, that's for sure! We are very blessed and thankful for everything we have and all the experiences we've enjoyed in that time. As Rob would say, it's pretty cool.