Mr. Noodle

I've been watching a lot of PBS Kids lately. More than I thought I'd be watching with a 10 month old. No, we don't sit in front of the TV all day, but our morning consists of floor play while we watch (some of) Sesame Street, Curious George, or (sometimes) Martha Speaks. I usually DVR one or more of these shows so that we can watch them later in the day, but we always watch one thing: Elmo's World. The boy loves his Elmo!

Now, Elmo is cute and I can see why so many kids love him, but I think the real star of the show is Mr. Noodle. (Not so much Mr. Noodle's brother, Mr. Noodle, but I do like when they are both on at the same time.) Why this affection for Mr. Noodle, you ask? I don't know if I can narrow it down to one reason. I just know that he makes me laugh and, in some ways, he reminds me of my dad. Scary, I know, but if you know my dad you can probably understand why.

So, here's to you, Mr. Noodle. You give this mommy a much needed laugh every morning. What else can a mommy ask for? :)

(This is the episode we saw this morning)

Soon and very soon!

I know that age is just a number. You're only as old as you feel, right? (Good grief....that means some days I'm a 60 year old woman!) I will be turning 30 years old thirty days from today--May 21st. I'm not upset about it. I won't be ashamed to tell people my age. I won't be eternally 29. I just can't believe how quickly it came. It feels like my twenties went by in the blink of an eye.

I just realized something: The reason my twenties went by so quickly is because they were so much fun! Between college and really being out on my own in my early twenties, to meeting the man of my dreams and marrying at 25, to having a career where I truly felt I made a difference, to buying and decorating a house, and finally to having my life long dream of becoming a mother become a reality, I have lived a wonderful, blessed life.

Adam, Aiden, and I are heading down to Ft. Myers, FL for my birthday week. I know I'm not a kid anymore, but I still love the idea of making a fuss over the "big" birthdays. I wanted to do a cruise, but I had to accept that bringing a baby on a cruise probably wouldn't work. Instead, we are spending the week with my parents at their Florida home. (I'm also toying with the idea of having a themed 30th birthday party...)

I am very excited to get away--I haven't been anywhere (except NJ) since Aiden's been born--but I'm also nervous, too. Adam and I decided that it would be best for Aiden if Adam drove to FL so that we could bring the things we really need while we're away. (It also helps that we're saving money that way...) So, yes, I will flying with my little man all by myself. All. by. my. self. It gives me chills...

Yes, my Aiden is a good boy, but he's never flown before, so I guess what I most afraid of is the unknown. What if he poops mid-flight? Where am I supposed to change him? (The boy wants to be changed immeadiately!) What if he cries the entire time? What if we have a delay on the runway? All of this stresses me out...

But I am choosing to look on the bright side. I'm going on vacation...woo hoo! The flight is only two hours (only...ha!) and if worse comes to worse, I can just feed him puffs for two hours straight. :o)

So, I am embracing my thirties with excitement. I can't wait to see what wonderful experiences the Lord has in store for me! And I'll let you know how the flight goes...

Tasty Tuesday

I had this for the first time on Easter and I loved it. It's the perfect "slaw" for people who, like me, HATE coleslaw. There are a bunch of variations to this recipe, but here's one that I made last night and it came out great. Happy tasting! :)


Broccoli Slaw Salad with Ramen Noodles

2 16 oz. packages broccoli slaw
1 3 oz. package Ramen noodles broken into small chunks, any flavor (I used beef)
1/2 cup scallions
1 cup unsalted peanuts
1/2 cup raisins, optional (I think they add great flavor! Next time I'm trying Craisins)

Dressing:

1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup canola oil
1/3 cup cider or balsamic vinegar
seasoning packet from Ramen noodles

P90X-ing

You've seen the infomercials. They're on allllll the time. I'll admit it, I would watch and wonder if P90X was something I could do, but I've spent money on programs before that weren't all they were cracked up to be and I wasn't down with wasting my money. Luckily P90X fell into my lap recently and I knew I had no more excuses...I had to give it a try.

Here I am on day five my P90X workouts and I am feeling good. Are they hard? YES! But I have a wonderful sense of satisfaction when I finish my work out each morning. I still did not take my "before" pictures; I guess I should do that today, huh? And noooo, I will not be posting my "befores" but we'll see what day 90 looks like and maybe I'll post some pics then.

That being said, I have two goals: to get fit and to be able to do a pull up. Yes, a single pull up. I won't be blogging about my P90X experience regularly, but I will keep you posted from time to time on how I'm doing. For now I'll just put it out there that I'm taking on this challenge and I'm excited about it!

p.s. Have you done the program or are currently doing it? I'd love to hear about it...

A New Beginning

I thought that I would be able to do it all. A housekeeping, dinner-on-the-table-when-the-hubby-got-home, baby-whisperer, blogging mama. (wait, I hear a buzzer here...) Wrong!


I do do the housekeeping, but some days I would be mortified if someone stopped by my house unexpectedly. I get dinner on the table, but most days it waaaay after the hubby gets home from work. Baby whisperer? I'll admit that my little guy is easy going, but there are certainly times when I feel like I need some help. And then there's blogging. Yeah. Right.

I wanted to be the mom who blogged about her beautiful birth story (c-section!), the ups and downs of motherhood (can we say breastfeeding?!) and of life in general. I wanted to post the countless pictures of the baby (Ok, so I did...on Facebook...) and to use my blog as a release from the daily grind of being a stay at home mom (which I am so incredibly thankful for, but there are times when it gets a little monotonous.).

So, here I am blogging for the first time a full 9 1/2 months after the birth of my sweet boy. And why am I doing it? Because I trying to turn a new leaf. I'm reorganizing and restructuring my house, my priorities, the way that I take care of myself, and yes, my blog. I'm doing something for myself for a change. Something that makes me feel connected to myself and my life on a different level. Something that I can reflect on later on.

Here it is world. Is it always pretty? No. But it's my life on the lane... (pun intended)