Rain, Rain, Go Away!

I am so sick of the rain. I usually don't get too bent out of shape about rain but I feel like it has rained everyday this month. I was so excited about spending lots of time going on walks and enjoying the fall colors and teaching Grace about leaves this fall. I feel like it is a rare day when the sun is shining and we get to spend the afternoon outside.

October 2002 was another rainy time that I remember. It was during the year that I was living in Germany and my friend Tasha and I decided not to get bus passes that month. We rode our bikes everywhere. But it rained almost everyday so we got soaked on a daily basis. I remember being miserable and ready to move back home but at that point I was only 2 months into my 12 month stay. The next few months I bought a bus pass and things got better. In the spring and summer I went back to riding my bike everywhere and the weather was beautiful.

I have come to 2 conclusions based on this post....

1. I am happy I have a car now.

2. This sounds like a junior high essay written right before it was due and because of that I didn't delete this post like common sense would lead me to do and decided to publish it instead.

Belts and Leg Warmers

While Matt was away on a men's retreat this weekend Grace and I got to spend some time at my parents' house. It was lots of fun and I know Grace loves spending time with Grandma and Grandpa. Since my mom has a serger I was able to spend some time working on a leg warmer project I had been thinking about for a while. I bought a pair of super cute leg warmers at Target long before Grace was born and am a little appalled that I spent 10 dollars on them. So, I did some interneting and found several tutorials on how to make baby leg warmers out of adult knee socks. Lot's of people have blogged the steps with pictures but I felt weird linking other blogs of people I don't know to my own so just search "baby leg warmers out of socks." The eHow directions are found here. Anyway, I had three pairs of knee socks that I never wear (they annoy me) so I made some cute leg warmers for Grace.


The other project that I decided to work on was kids belts. I was watching my friend's 18 month old little girl the other day and her jeans were constantly falling down. I decided since my mom has tons of cute fabric I would whip up a couple belts for her. It was fun and thought it would be a fun surprise for my friend. Of course I had to make matching ones for Grace. (Amy, I will probably be dropping the belts off on Monday afternoon for Charlotte seeing as one of them is seasonal.)

6 Months Old!

WOW! That's all I can say about the last month and about the fact that Grace is now 6 months old. I am loving this stage. So I'll keep it as short as possible and try to keep things in categories to summarize this last month.

Eating: About a week ago I decided to nurse Grace every 4 hours only 4 times a day due to a dropped nap and earlier bedtime (see sleeping) which put her last 2 feedings about an hour apart. It made sense to drop a feeding and it has been going really well. Monday morning we gave Grace her first taste of rice cereal. She loved it from the start. She was even opening her mouth for the spoon. We'll add another serving of cereal in the evening next week and the week after introduce sweet potatoes.

Sleeping: Sleeping had been going pretty much the same until a week and a half ago. All of a sudden Grace had no interest in taking a 3rd nap. So, I decided to just go for it and drop it. This moved her bedtime a little earlier to between 7 and 7:30 which is what I expected. It is kind of nice because it frees us up to do more things in the late afternoon since she doesn't have to get home for a nap and since I'm nursing her less often.

Teething: Last Monday I was at the church office working on some stuff and my friend Jenna asked if Grace was getting a tooth and I said nope. But then on Wednesday Matt was playing with Grace and noticed that she did indeed have a tooth that had broken through her gums. I'm pretty sure that Jenna noticed Grace's tooth before her parents even did:) As of today she has 2 little teeth on the bottom that have broken through and are growing quickly.

Rolling/Sitting/Crawling: Grace is not crawling yet but I put it in this category because she gets up on all fours all the time. She has also started rocking back and forth on all fours. Who knows how long she'll be content just sitting this way but she is in the go position...maybe by her 7 month post. She still loves playing on her stomach so she always rolls to her tummy and sleeps on her tummy. Every once in a while she'll roll both ways to transport herself but she seems pretty content just doing weird pivotal scoots all over the blanket and floor. She is also a superstar sitter and really loves playing from the sitting position. I think about a week after she was 5 months old I felt like she had this skill mastered.

Our Schedule: These times are approximates but we don't usually stray by more than 15 or 20 minutes on either side.

7:00 - Wake-up and nurse
9:00-10:30 - Nap time
11:00 - Nurse
12:45 - 3:00 - Nap time
3:00 - Nurse
6:30 - Nurse, get ready for bed, take bath, play quietly
7:15 - Bedtime

We cannot believe that Grace is 6 months old already. The time has flown by so quickly. She is such a joy and we are so blessed to have her in our lives!

Food, Glorious Food!

Another issue that I will address in Grace's 6 month post is her eating habits as of late. One part of that is she started solid foods this week. I think that deserves a post of its own. Here is a picture story.....

1. I ate babyfood at a church event several years ago and was disgusted. I swore I would never eat the stuff again. This did not contribute to my decision to make my own food because I'm sure we will buy jars of food to give to Grace too. I think I am just intrigued by the adventure of making food for Grace.










2. Several years later and 2 days ago Grace's first taste of cereal. She loved it.










3. Now that Grace had cereal I needed to start thinking about making fruits and veggies. I have 2 books about making baby food. I was overwhelmed with the thick one so settled on using the thin one. I love it and it really makes it easy.










4. Let the baby food making begin. I started with sweet potatoes. I cooked and food processed 3 of them to get a delicious first veggie for Grace to try soon.










5. Yummo! Here is the end result. I tried them and they were even good. After this I just scooped them into ice cube trays, froze them overnight, and emptied the cubes into freezer bags. I can't wait for Grace's reaction.










6. Next food on the list to make this week....PEAS!!!!

6 Month Pictures

My sister came yesterday and we had a nice visit with her. She took some amazing pictures of Grace that we will be getting printed. Since she will be 6 months tomorrow (check back for her 6 month update tomorrow) it was perfect timing to take some good pictures. No need to pay a professional when you have a sister who can take excellent free pictures. Here are some of my favorites.







If you like her pictures check out her blog sometime. She puts up lots of fun crafty and photography stuff. She's very creative.

Hamburger Horseshoe

I realize I've been posting a lot of recipes lately but I've been trying some new things that I really have enjoyed cooking and eating. Last weekend I attempted to make the Hamburger Horseshoe. In case you don't know it is a thick piece of bread topped with hamburger, fries, and tons of cheese sauce. I scoured the internet for a recipe that looked good, modified it a little bit, and cut it way down. It was delicious! Here is my recipe for Hamburger Horseshoes for 2 BIG eaters so this would definitely feed a family with kids.

Ingredients:

1/2 pound 80/20 ground beef (yeah its not good for you but it makes the tastiest burgers)
2 slices Texas bread
French fries (I made fries out of 3 medium sized potatoes but you can buy the frozen kind too)
1/2 stick butter
1/4 cup flour
1 1/4 cups milk
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground mustard
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
3 cups or 3/4 pound grated white cheddar cheese (I bought a block of aged cheddar from the deli and grated on my own, a little more expensive but makes up for it in taste)
1/4 can beer

Directions:

1. Put fries in the oven to cook while making cheese sauce.

2. Send someone outside to grill burgers or bake in oven along with fries. I always make my patties with salt, pepper and Worcestershire sauce.

3. Melt butter in saucepan on medium low.

4. Whisk in flour until it is darker and bubbly.

5. Add milk and turn up heat until it starts to bubble and thicken.

6. Add salt, pepper, mustard, Worcestershire, and cheese and stir until it is a nice creamy sauce.

7. Add beer.

8. Pile up bread, burger, fries and top generously with cheese.

Crock-Pot Reubens

Here is a delicious and very easy crock-pot recipe that I made on Friday evening.

Crock-Pot Reubens

Ingredients:

Sauerkraut
Corned beef (I buy Carl Buddig and it is cheap!)
Swiss cheese
Thousand Island dressing
Rye Bread

Directions:

1. In crock-pot layer sauerkraut, Swiss cheese, corned beef, and Swiss cheese for as many sandwiches as you want to make.

2. Heat on low for 2 - 3 hours.

3. Toast rye bread right before serving.

4. Spread Thousand Island on bread or use for dipping.

5. Make Reuben sandwiches from crock-pot contents.

MLB Playoff Predictions

The calendar has turned to October so that means it's playoffs time for Major League Baseball. I will be forecasting the division series match-ups and offering predictions that are worth gambling on(*).

First, though, I'd like to thank the Minnesota Twins and Detroit Tigers for starting off the postseason with a grand game last night. It was a back-and-forth classic that the home team Twins eventually won in the 12th inning. Go baseball.

Now on the predictions....

Rockies vs Phillies: The Phillies won the World Series last year, but two years ago the Rockies swept the Phillies in the playoffs. Rockies are the hotter team, so I'll go with them. Rockies shall prevail in 5.

Cardinals vs Dodgers: The Cardinals like to wear red, and the Dodgers like to wear blue. My favorite color is blue, but the Cardinals have better pitching. Cardinals win in 4 games.

Twins vs Yankees: The Twins are really tired after their long game last night. The Yankees are rested and spent a billion dollars on their team. And the Yankees probably are taking steroids. Yankees in 4.

Red Sox vs Angels: These two teams have played the last two years with the Red Sox prevailing both years. I think the Angels will turn the tide this year. I have no justification for that. Just my gut feeling. Angels in 5.

* Note: Pennyrile does not guarantee any predictions and is not liable for any money lost by readers that gamble based on the predictions. Also, note that Pennyrile does not support gambling outside of Fantasy Football.