GJR 4 Months Old

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My sweet boy how can you possibly be 4 months old already?! You are the epitome of everything a "good" baby is.

You're sensitive. And it's adorable. {I hope it never changes.}

Your hair doesn't know what color it wants to be. Sometimes it looks blonde, sometimes brown, sometimes red, sometimes all 3.

You know how to get what you want. {See "sensitive".}

Sometimes you scream like a girl. At the end of a recent bath, the last rinse was a little cooler than the previous rinse. You let out the loudest girliest scream, completely straight-faced, but screaming like a banshee. I almost pee'd my pants laughing.

You love your cloth diapers. At least I pretend you do. You really do seem to hate disposables. I don't think you like the crunchiness. Your bottom is high maintenance.

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You love eating your hands fingers and thumbs. I wonder sometimes if you'll be a finger or thumb sucker but it's mostly chewing that you do.

I swear you've been teething since you were 10 weeks.

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You love your milk but only from the tap. You hate formula, it makes you gag. {You don't have to worry, as long as I'm around it will only be breast milk for you.} You're coming around with bottles, but it's been a long learning process and you still have a way to go. No long date nights for mommy and daddy anytime soon.

You're SO ticklish.

You think stinky piggies are HILARIOUS.

You love fresh air and being outside.

You love being worn. {I couldn't live without my Moby wrap some days.}

You're a little drool machine. You've got impecable timing and have hit me in the eye, face and mouth with your drool bombs.

I absolutely adore your drooly kisses.

I could melt to the floor when you lay your head on your daddies chest.

Your face lights up in the morning. You're the happiest boy in the morning and its impossible to hate the world when you look at me with your amazing grin, wide eyes, and greet me with a coo.

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Your ears are my favorite feature. You have your daddy's and my grandaddy's ears. You're 4 months and they're the same size as your 9 year old brothers. I LOVE them. I love kissing them and nibbling them and whispering into them. They're adorable and increase your cuteness 10 fold. Please don't ever hate these ears I adore soooo much.

I lied. I love all of your features. You chin and cheeks and neck and eyes and nose and all of you.

I love YOU Grayson James! Happy 4 months my little Chunkins!

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Wordless{ish} Wednesday

...my sweet sensitive boy...
Sad Baby Grayson


Sad Baby Grayson II


Grayson has become quite the sensitive boy these days. If you stick your lip out at him, he will stick his back out at you. If you pretend to cry, he just melts. And then I melt. He cries, I cry. We don't do that anymore. It's too much on my heart to see my baby so sad! I squeeze him tight and kiss away the tears and pouty lip.

Linkin' up with ♥ The Paper Mama & and then she {snapped}.



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blog your heart out

I blog for several reasons.

A} I kinda sorta use it as a virtual baby book in many ways. I don't want to forget the funny/crazy things my kids do, how quickly they grow. One day I will be able to look back and remember when Leah stopped signing "Thank You" and starting saying it. When Joshua and I spent an afternoon drive talking about terminators and velociraptors. When Hailey's face broke her fall after a bike accident. What Grayson looked when he was bald up top and only had hair on the sides and then when he was bald on the sides and only had hair up top.

2} So that the grandparents and aunts can read about Joshua's awesome haircut, Hailey's first week of kindergarten, Leah's favorite food, and Grayson's earliest milestones.

III} To get the crazies out. Because sometimes they just can't stay locked up anymore.

d} To connect with other people who are going through the same things in life I happen to be going through. There's a huge support system in the interwebs.

E} I'm not a completely selfish person. I like to share. Sometimes it's easier to blog it than tell eleventy-million people. If I fall in love with a recipe? BLOG IT. If I discover something amazingly useful and awesome? BLOG IT.

6} Lastly I use it for the little bit of photography and design I still do here and there. I ditched the separate sites and plopped all my shiz down right here in one blog.

That's a lot of reasons.

I pretty much look at blogging as a hobby. I enjoy it. It's fun. It's therapeutic. And it's incredibly useful. It's probably the longest I've stuck to a hobby, and I honestly don't ever see myself stopping. As long as my kids are growing and changing, as long as my shutter's a clicking, as long as I have my family to share my life with, I will be blogging.

Like all hobbies though, sometimes they just happen to take a backseat to life for a while. I go through spurts where I'm not blogging very often, and spurts where I'm posting more than once a day. Right now I'm just not posting often. Actually, I'm just not publishing often. The posts are still coming. They're just not being completed. Not coming to fruition.

When that happens my family is pretty much in the dark with what's going on because I am H O R R I B L E at communication. I'm basically allergic to calling people. It makes me itch just thinking about it. And it seems like the very moment I walk away from my phone is the time people decide to call me. Resulting in me missing their call. And because I don't want a twitchy eye I don't call them back. Also, I forget to call people back. Usually. Also, I just don't like calling people. {It may have to do with the 4 noise makers I have to talk over, or having my hands full with dishes, laundry, dirty diapers, you know...life.} Sadly, when I do sit down and take 5 I don't feel like calling people. I usually feel like blogging...it's just my way.

So dad, uncle Bob, okay I don't have an uncle Bob, so....dad...and the rest of ya'll who I love and who read this? Sorry for the lack of info from the ye old Renwick abode. I hope to give a run down post soon!

For everyone else...why do you blog? Did you start out blogging for a specific purpose? Has that reason since changed?

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Block

I would like to say I'm having some sort of writer's block. But I'm not. I'm having a full-blown communication block. I'm failing at communicating lately. I can't seem to form a thought and then verbalize it effectively. Okay honestly at times I'm struggling with the forming a thought part. I'm stumbling over my words. Stammering. Studdering. I have word vomit. Word vomit all the time. Just puking up words.

It's seriously giving me flash back to pregnancy brain.

I have 26 blog drafts. Just sitting there. Half finished. Started when I could execute successful thought and speech processes.

It's horribly frustrating. And at Hailey's parent teacher conference, it was horribly embarrassing. I shit-you-not, I had to go back, and email Hailey's teacher later that evening. It took hours to put everything together that I wanted to say and tried to say. I was all over the place at the conference. If I was Hailey's teacher I would totally suspect drugs or alcohol were involved.

But nope.

My brain? My brain is just...tired.

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Tommee Tippee Review and Giveaway {CLOSED}

I will never forget the premiere of Twilight. But not because of the cinematic adventure, but because Leah was 2 months old and cried the ENTIRE time I was gone. Until she fell asleep, refusing to take a bottle the entire time. I had never thought twice about Leah not taking a bottle. Sure she'd never really had one before, but she'd never had a reason to. She took a paci, so why wouldn't she take a bottle if she was hungry? Leah never did take a bottle. No matter what we tried. We tried a dozen different bottles, even an expensive bottle that looked and felt like a boob! She went from breast to sippy cup. While this was all fine and dandy, going almost an entire year without being able to leave her? NOT FINE AND DANDY.



From the time I found out I was pregnant with Grayson I vowed that he would take a bottle! I wouldn't wait until he was 2 months old this time. I would wait a couple of weeks until he was well established in nursing, 3 weeks tops, and then introduce the bottle. He took a paci, and even had a bottle in the hospital because of his low blood sugar. A few weeks after we got home I was excited to give him his first bottle! We did everything right. Waited until he was hungry, but not starving. Had Mel feed him, so he wouldn't be confused. I even left the room in case my smell threw him off! We used Playtex Nursers, "closest to the breast"! Right?

Wrong.

Grayson would NOT take the bottle. I hadn't intended to give up so easily. I was determined to stay on him, to teach him to use the bottle. But time went by so quickly, and there wasn't any immediate need for him to take a bottle, so like a lot of things it got swept under the rug. A few weeks later I wanted to try again, but no luck. We tried Nuk this time. No luck. We tried various bottles and nipples and Grayson just wouldn't take anything!!

I was tired of trying bottles and wasting money.

Enter Tomme Tippee!






Tommee Tippe graciously sent me a pack of their closer to nature® bottle to try out with Grayson. I was really reluctant but really desperate and as you can expect really skeptical.

closer to nature® bottles are designed to be the closest thing to natural breast feeding. The super-wide nipple flexes and stretches like the breast and the sensitive anti-colic valve allows babies to feed comfortably with less air and vacuum build-up.

  • Nipple mimics natural feel, flex and movement of breastfeeding
  • Allows for easy transition between breast and bottle
  • Wide neck nipple for easier latch on
  • Anti-colic, anti-gas, advanced easi-vent™ valve
  • BPA & Phthalate Free
  • Graduations in mls and ounces
  • Hygiene Cap seals the nipple for travel
You can read more about Tommee Tippe here: http://www.tommeetippee.us/

The Experiment:
First we tried something I wasn't planning on. Formula. Long story of the "why", it just turned out that way. Little man was NOT having it. I was actually shocked when he actually began sucking, that was a first! But as soon as the formula hit his mouth he was gagging. {Can you say dramatic?!} Mel thought for sure it was the formula and said if we tried breast milk he was sure he would take it. This was the first success we'd had with him sucking a bottle! Now if we could just get him eating from one!

A couple weeks later, after an especially engorged morning I decided to pump, and instantly remembered the new bottles! Unfortunately Mel was super busy fixing the lawn mower. {of course} so I enlisted the help of Hailey. 


He looked confused, but we persisted!








Finally, Daddy stepped in and took over.




Verdict? See for yourself...



That's an OVER an ounce people! OVER AN OUNCE! GRAYSON DRANK OVER AN OUNCE OF BREAST MILK FROM A BOTTLE!!!

It took time. It took dedication. {It took almost 45 minutes for him to drink that ounce, but dang it, that's SUCCESS.} I didn't give up, and for the first time we saw success.

I can honestly say, other than the insanely boobified bottle, that they don't even make anymore by the way, this bottle is truly the closest to breast that I could find. I've had friends who exclusively breast fed and have had the same problem and I COMPLETELY recommend Tommee Tippee to them now.

Buy It

Buy now at http://www.toysrus.com/family/index.jsp?categoryId=3945443!

Win It

One lucky reader will win a 3 pack of 150ml/5 oz. closer to nature® feeding bottles from Tommee Tippee! FIRST visit Tommee Tippee on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/TommeeTippeeNorthAmerica click "Like" and don't forget to thank them for the giveway! THEN stop by their Twitter: @TommeeTippee_NA and follow their tweets to stay up-to-date with Tommee Tippee news! Then come back, leave a comment saying why you would like to win these awesome bottles, and fill out the Rafflecopter form. Good luck!
 






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The Pinterest Project= Super Mega Cool BLOG



you know those things you come across that are AWESOME and you're like, "WHY DIDN'T I THINK OF THAT?!". This blog is one of those things.

Two awesome chicks, Miranda, and Jamie, teamed up to create The Pinterest Project. Their slogan, "A pin a day keeps the crazy away.". The premise? "Two SAHM's warding off routine and insanity by working through Pinterest.com, one pin at a time. Follow us as we tackle DIY projects, recipes and more!"

How awesome is that? Each day, they pick a pin off of Pinterest to tackle, and then blog their experience! One of my faves is their "Hit or Miss Monday"s where they share what they consider good stuff or BOMBS.

They really inspire me to try things I pin. I always have good intentions to, but they actually DO it. They also happen to be really funny characters so it makes the blog that much more fun to read. If you're not following The Pinterest Project you need to! You can follow them via Google Friend Connect, or subscribe via email. If you do, tell them the Photog Nazi sent ya! ^_^





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Tasty Tuesday: Enchilada Love



I'm a pinner, I love me some Pinterest hardcore. I'm constantly pinning and repinning recipes. I happened upon this particular prize and pinned it weeks ago. When I went into Pineterest to look for some meal ideas for the week this one really stuck out to me so I jotted down the ingrediants and recipe and headed to the store.

The recipe sounded phenom, it had great potential but I thought personally that it was lacking in some areas, so I made some swaps.

Click {HERE} for the original ingredients list from justgetoffyourbuttandbake.com.

Here is my take on it:


    Serve with lettuce, chopped tomatoes, green onion and olives!

    I honestly can't begin to tell you how delicious this casserole was. Usually I despise "casseroles". Even the word sounds gross. But this? This is perfection on your tongue. If you luck out there will be left overs. It's A-MA-ZING the next day. But chances are there won't be. I'm making a double batch next time. Just Mel, Leah, and I were able to eat all but one small serving which I had the next day for lunch. Yes, it was THAT good.





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    life in phone pics

    PhotobucketPhotobucketPhotobucketPhotobucketPhotobucketPhotobucketPhotobucketPhotobucketPhotobucketPhotobucketPhotobucketPhotobucketPhotobucketPhotobucketPhotobucketPhotobucketPhotobucket


    a} A little entertainment between siblings. b} Mmm...fingers.. C} Homework D} stud muffin e} casey shu shu f} kisses from pops g} sleepies h} cuddles with mommy i} contortion sleeping J} Zzzzzz... k} rockStar L} playtime m} 1st nigh in crib n} chunkins 0}BANGS! p}feel asleep in mama's lap q} fell asleep holding hands

    Dump your pics and link up with Amy from A Good Life!









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    WINNER! Smartipants Giveaway Winner Is...






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    Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day

    Today is October 15th, Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day. This is the first year I've heard of this day. I didn't know it was an actual "thing". I think it's awesome and I wish I had heard about is sooner.

    According to a 2004 National Vital Statistics Report issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in 2000, 15.6% or 1,003,000 of the 6,401,000 pregnancies in the United States ended in either a miscarriage or stillbirth; the CDC also indicates that in 2003 the number of live births in the United States was 4,093,000; of those births, 27,500 ended in the death of an infant under the age of one.*
    What devastating statistics. I have lost babies, and sometimes I feel like I'm the only one that remembers them. Thinks about them. I have had those nearest and dearest to me suffer great losses. I know some of the pain they feel, but I will never pretend to fully understand. I think about their babies and my babies often. Who they would have been, how old they would be now. I know one day we will be with our babies again, and I picture that time.

    Today, especially, I am taking time to remember.

    I want my loved ones to know that they're NOT the only ones that think about the babies they lost. They're NOT the only ones who remember. Don't for one second think you're alone in remembering. I am right there with you!

    *Source: http://www.october15th.com/

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    Bang! Bang!

    I have bangs.

    Fringe.

    Whatever you want to call them. {I think it's cute when people call them fringe.}

    For some reason the other day I decided I was going to cut my bangs. I pinned my hair bag, held my scissors...and chickened out. I couldn't do it. I couldn't chop my hair.

    A few days later? I put my hair up. Parted where I wanted my bangs to fall, pinned it back, held my hair between my fingers, held up my scissors...and chickened out.

    Today? Today was the same song and dance. Hair up, parted, pinned, scissors in hand, chickened out. I laid down, still sick. My hair still up, parted and pinned I laid there looking ridiculous. I lay there for about 2 minutes. I jumped up, grabbed the scissors, took a deep breathe...



    and chopped my long hair off.

    I immediately wanted to cry.

    Then I put my big girl panties on.

    I'm not in love with them, but I don't hate them. I haven't had bangs since the 7th grade, so it's going to take some getting used to. I like them more now than I did when I first chopped them. So that's good. Right?

    Moral of the story? Don't make life changing decisions when you've been laying around sick all day.

    But really when it comes down to it?

    It's just hair...


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    Blah


    I've had a small cold here and there but I haven't been full blown sick in a long time. I woke up this morning and before I even got out of bed my stomach hurt. Blah. I've had pretty bad stomach pain almost all day, and have pretty much slept all day. I woke up from my most recent nap with a bad headache. Probably from sleeping too much.

    Anyway, being sick sucks.

    Just in case you didn't know.

    Now I'm worried Leah is getting whatever this is because she's complaining of her tummy hurting.

    I think we all need some warm banana bread....


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    Excorsized

    I was SO tired and grumpy this morning! Grayson did great last night, he didn't even wake up for his normal 5 am feeding. So you would THINK I would feel well rested. I swear I feel more tired. I'm not a nice person when I'm tired. I'm the not the nicest jolliest person when I'm NOT tired, but when you add in the sleepies? I can be downright EVIL.

    This is a pretty accurate interpretation of an early morning ME:

    Yep. That pretty much sums it up.

    It's really bad though. I try EVERY morning for the next to be better. But I always end up cursing at some point. And not in an "ouch I stubbed my toe" way, but an "I'm angry and hate the world, and I hate you and I hate myself" way.

    Then I feel guilty.

    I was up late last night. I kick myself EVERY time I look at the clock and it's after 11. I vow EVERY night, "I will be IN bed ready to sleep at 10pm!". Never happens. Okay, RARELY happens. So anyway, up late last night and I decided to do something I haven't done in a while. I decided to spend some time with God.

    Saying I don't spend enough time with God is an understatement. After getting through the hard time I went through, I felt happy and lucky just to be in church again. Recently I even joined a lifegroup! And something weird happened last night, I actually thought, "Hey, I'm going to spend some time with God.". I thought of it all my own, and actually DID it.

    I busted out my bible and SOAP journal. My last SOAP entry? March. March of LAST year. 19 months. 19 months since I sat down and made a point to give time to my heavenly father. I can't imagine going 19 months without talking to my mom or dad. How did I let 19 months go by without talking to God?

    YES, I prayed. A TON. But there's a difference between praying and really giving time to Him.

    I read a few verses from Psalms and SOAP'd them. {SOAP stands for Scripture, Observation, Application, and Prayer and it's an awesome way for someone like me, who struggles with understanding the bible, to really absorb the Word.}

    It's bat crap crazy what a difference it makes when you make it a point to give your time, mind, and heart over to Him like that. It's a lot harder to forget and ignore and a lot easier to just....TRY.

    I honestly think it made a difference this morning. I'm not saying the Lord touched me and I have exorcised my demons. I'm just saying that putting scripture into my head and journaling it really helped it sink in. I actually really tried this morning.

    I'm praying right now for God to really work through me in the mornings, to help bind my tongue from being so dang EVIL. I didn't hate EVERYone this morning. Just most people...and that? That's progress. Maybe one day I won't hate ANYone in the mornings. That's what I'm hoping for anyway...


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    Tasty Tuesday: It's Bananas!


    If you offered me a slice of banana bread a week ago I would have politely declined. I never cared to try banana bread. It looked...weird. So what changed? 3 bananas on the brink of death. That's what changed. And pinterest. Pinterest has a way of inspiring you to bake, make, create.

    I couldn't bear the thought of tossing 3 full bananas. I knew there were recipes so I googled, "easy banana recipes" and the first thing that popped up? Banana bread. I clicked on several links before settling on what I felt was the easiest. {And it didn't have nuts.} I scribbled the recipe down and headed to the kitchen to gather the ingrediants.

    I wish I had bookmarked the website. Now I can't find it! Anyhow here it is...



    Ingredients:
    3 or 4 ripened bananas
    1/3 cup melted butter
    1 cup sugar
    1 egg, beaten
    1 tsp vanilla
    1 tsp baking soda
    pinch of salt
    1 1/2 cups of all purpose flour

    • Preheat oven to 350°
    • Mash bananas in large mixing bowl
    • Mix melted butter into bananas
    • Mix in sugar, beaten egg, and vanilla
    • Sprinkle salt and baking soda over the mixture and stir together
    • Add flour last, mix
    • Pour mixture into buttered/greased 4x8 in. loaf pan
    • Bake 1 hour cool, slice, serve, enjoy!

    I'm telling you, my house smelled A-MA-ZING while the banana bread baked. I am now wishing for some banana bread plug-in's.

    The recipe called for an hour but I paid close attention with my nose and when it started smelling "done" I checked on it. With 9 minutes still left on the clock I pulled it out. I did the toothpick check and it was done. My oven can be whonky. Make sure to use your nose so you don't end up with dry or burnt banana bread!

    The verdict?


    SUPER moist, SUPER delicious, SUPER yuminess. It was. SO. GOOD. Hailey and Mel loved it. I loved it too and will definitely make more the next time we don't eat the bananas in time. :)





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    AWESOME DEALS!

    Just wanted to share some awesome deals for local mama's!

    $15 for $30 Worth of Children's Clothing & Accessories at Peek-A-Boo Couture


    $5 for $10 at Just Chillin' Frozen Yogurt



    For awesome deals in your area, check out the bottom of the right sidebar!


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    It took 4 babies.

    Over 9 years.

    But it happened.

    I suppose it was inevitable.

    It was awful.

    Has it happened to you?

    You know...

    the whole....

    spit-up in the mouth thing?

    No?

    I hate you.

    It was bad.

    Very bad.

    It tasted....

    bad.

    Okay, bad is an understatement.

    I want to throw up just thinking about it.

    Word to the wise?

    Close your mouth around airborne babies.

    Just saying.


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    Happy Columbus Day!

    someecards.com - Let's celebrate Columbus day by walking into someone's house and telling them we live there now






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    ♥ your tata's!





    I've come to the conclusion that boobs are like snowflakes. No two are alike.

    When the thought first struck me, I asked myself, "Don't you mean no two PAIRS are alike?" But I thought about it, and NO self. I meant what I said the first time! No two are alike.

    Boobs are like identical twins. At first they may appear to be exactly the same. But when you look closer, you discover the subtle differences.

    I.E. The left has that freckle, while the right is just a wee bit bigger. You know. Those types of differences.

    You could pay thousands upon thousands and no doctor would ever be able to create two exactly the same.

    Ladies, cherish those unique bossoms of yours. Love them. Check them often. Early detection saves lives!!!


    October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month!

    The Best Big Sister Ever...



    I can honestly say that Hailey has grown to be the best big sister I've ever seen. She is patient. And caring. And loving. And everything a big sister should be. I never in a million years would think that out of my babies, she would be the maternal one. To put it in a nutshell, Hailey is a badass. In every sense of the word. She is rough, and tough, can walk off bumps and bruises that would bring me to my knees, she's tough skinned, she's sassy, but the heart I thought was made of steel? Come to find out, that heart is made of gold.


    She melts at her baby brothers smile. And I melt as I watch this bond she is creating between them.

    I know that they will always have a special bond, and I'm excited to see what it grows into.


    {Meeting for the first time.}

    {Kisses from sissy.}

    {Reading to baby brother.}


    {Homework with Grayson...just because she can't put him down.}



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