Redmond is TWO!!

Hard to believe that my little man is two years old! It's also hard to believe that he's only been in our lives for two short years.


We had a small Sesame Street themed party for him this year - he got so much great stuff! So thankful for all the great people in his life!
 



Still wasn't a fan of the cake. At one point he had three different pieces in front of him, but refused to take a bite.



We were in Virginia for his actual birthday, so the lucky boy got two celebrations. We had cake for him and his cousin Hannah at his Aunt Nicole's house on his actual birthday.


Redmond, you bring us so much joy every day! We love watching you grow and seeing you become a little man. You are such a little comedian and are a great big brother! You are really starting to love trains, cars and trucks. Building blocks and making things go "boom!" is also a favorite. You know at least ten colors and have for a few months. You recognize all the letters of the alphabet and we're working on singing the ABC song. If you're in the mood, you can count to at least seven (that's the highest daddy has gotten you to count). You love pointing out shapes - red octagons are your favorite :) Elmo, Barney and Blue's Clues are your favorite shows. You LOVE music and dancing - you ask mommy to play music on her iPad every morning while you drink your milk and she has her coffee. We go to Kindermusik and the library every week and you love them both. You have really become more comfortable in strange places and whenever you see strangers you look to daddy or I and say "nice people?" You're currently getting your canine teeth and two of your two year molars. Once these teeth come in you just have two more molars to go! Your favorite foods are "hot eggs", fruit, pizza, pb&j, pasta, bread, red peppers, cucumbers, cheese and pickles.

I could go on and on about you Redmond. We love you so much and can't wait to watch you grow! Love you buddy!!

Weekly Menu

Time to get back on track! We spent last week at my sister's house in Virginia. I pretty much ate like I've never eaten before. Had a great time with my family, but glad to be back home.

Weekly Menu
November 25 - December 1

Sunday:        Cheesy Basil Stuffed Chicken, Jasmine rice and roasted vegetable medley
Monday:       Three Bean Chili and Cornbread
Tuesday:       Dinner at the in-laws
Wednesday:  Pierogi's with sautéed peppers & onions and salad
Thursday:     Stuffed Peppers and salad
Friday:          Jason's company Christmas dinner
Saturday:      Smoked pork shoulder, sweet potato fries and roasted asparagus

Halloween 2012

Last year, we had a hand-me-down costume from my sister which worked out great.  This year I had to buy one :(  Redmond has been obsessed with monkeys lately, so I was super excited to find a monkey costume on sale at Old Navy - I also found a little newborn skeleton onesie on clearance at Carter's - score!

Redmond still doesn't trick-or-treat (he'll go next year), so I was glad that the Library had a little Halloween party so he was able to wear his costume somewhere other than just to my in-laws.  We started going to Storytime every Wednesday at the library back in September and the wonderful librarian who hosts it, Ms. Linda, said she was going to have a Halloween party for the little kids this year - it was great!  Crazy to look at pictures from his first Halloween last year compared to this year - he is SO much bigger!

He wore his costume there, but we took it off when the snacking/crafts started.  He got a cool pair of glasses and had his first donut - he didn't like it at first, but came back and gobbled it up :)

Ashlyn slept the entire 2 hours we were at the library.  Once we got home she ate and passed out again.  Oh, the life of a baby :)

Mini Babymoon

Obviously, this post is a little late considering Miss Ashlyn is 2 weeks old already (2 weeks - I can't believe it!), but I still wanted to blog about it.

I planned this overnight getaway back in July and managed to keep it a secret up until 2 days before.  Now, I consider myself a good secret-keeper, but I am shocked I was able to keep this from Jason for three months. 

It was nothing spectacular, but special nonetheless.  I decided to book the same suite that Jason surprised me with on our wedding night at a local Bed & Breakfast - Chicago Pike Inn.


The suite we stayed in was The Garden Suite - and, as you can see, is appropriately named.  

I got a bottle of champagne for Jason and a bottle of sparkling Pomegranate & Apple juice for myself.  We talked, laughed, and just relaxed.  Being nearly 39 weeks pregnant I couldn't wait to get in the jacuzzi tub. 

It was a great mini getaway for the two of us.  Just in time too - I went into labor just 5 1/2 days later!