The Stromski's World

Freezer Baking Week

2010-07-12T19:27:00.000-07:00

Lately, I haven't had much inspiration in the kitchen. It is too hot to cook & I just want to eat!
I decided to do a freezer cooking/baking week. I will start by doubling all dinners for the week and freezing half. Then, I am lucky enough to have a babysitter come over to spend the morning w/ Garrett so I can get some breakfasts and lunches cooked/baked and stashed into the freezer. This will make my life easier for the next couple months while it is sweltering outside and I have no motivation.

Here is my game plan:

Breakfasts:
Stuffed Pancake Cupcakes
Cranberry Pumpkin Muffins

Lunches:
Pizza Rolls (I've never made these before either, I'm just making up the recipe as I go) =
Pizza Dough x 2
Chicken Taco Wraps
Chicken Taquitos (1st attempt so we'll see how they turn out)

Dinners:
Lasagna Casserole
Bar-B-Q Pulled Pork (for sandwiches)
Pizza Rolls (will freeze the rest for lunches)
Italian Chicken & Veggies Pasta Toss

Hopefully I will have enough time while the babysitter is here to get the bulk of this completed! I will let you know how successful I am :)

What's for dinner?

2010-07-06T19:49:00.001-07:00

I've been so busy lately I haven't made any meal plans, which unfortunately has made for a cranky and stressed mommy around dinner time trying to find something to make for dinner.

But, here's what I did do last week; I did a freezer baking day.
Since I had a full day at home (which is rare) and some extra time and energy, I decided to have a baking day. I had some potatoes hanging out in the pantry that I had no intention of using and we're on the verge of going bad, so I made freezer mashed potatoes, these are yummy and will come in handy later. I also made homemade whole wheat pita bread. They made 8 good sized pitas, I ate a 1/2 at a time, used 2 1/2 and froze the rest.

And for dinner tonight I made my own version of Chicken Tetrazzini served with broccoli and garlic bread! We had company over, they were impressed, it was delicious, it made a lot, and it is toddler friendly; score!

Chicken Tetrazzini
8 oz. Uncooked Spaghetti
1 15oz. Can Cream of Mushroom Soup
1 small Can of Mushrooms (or saute fresh)
1/2 Stick of Butter - Melted
8 oz. Sour Cream (I used fat free)
1-2 Chicken Breasts
1/2-1 Bell Pepper (your preferred color) - chopped or cut into strips
1/2 Onion - Chopped
1/4 tsp Pepper
1/2 tsp Garlic Salt
1/4 tsp Paprika

1/2 cup Cheddar Cheese
Parmesan Cheese

1.) Bake chicken breasts, peppers and onions all together in a little olive oil sprinkled with salt and pepper.
2.) Cook Spaghetti according to package, but break uncooked spaghetti in half before you throw it in the boiling water.
3.) Combine all other ingredients (minus cheeses) in a large bowl and set aside.
4.) When chicken and veggies are cooked, cut chicken into bite sized pieces and chop peppers. Let cool.
5.) Mix together chicken, veggies, and pasta into the sauce. Mix in cheddar cheese.
6.) Pour into a 9x13 baking dish, top with Parmesan cheese. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.
7.) Enjoy!!!

Children's Museum of Phoenix

2010-06-23T16:02:00.000-07:00

On Friday, June 4th we happily were able to go to the FREE first Friday at The Children's Museum of Phoenix sponsored by Target. It was such a great opportunity for us because it was in the evening so Eric was able to go & since it was FREE, we didn't have to fork over all that cash! Plus we saw lots of people there that we knew, which was fun to be able to hang out with them.

Garrett and I have only been once shortly after it opened, he had just turned 1, and was barely walking. This time was a much different experience. He's 2 and able to pretty much do anything! We went in every room & he and daddy had such fun playing w/ all the balls & cars! It was a great family trip & again I was able to cross something else off of my "Summer Challenge" list.

Anyone who knows my son, knows that he LOVES to color, it's probably his favorite thing to do. The museum has an arts & crafts room, so that was a big hit for Garrett.

This was such a cool room, it was a fort building room, with a cool tower and lots of soft big blocks for the kids to build. Amongst this chaos, my son finds the only book in the room and sits down to read. Again, this is the artsy side of my child!

Garrett's legs were a big too short for him to ride his own bike, so he hopped on the back of some random kids and went circling around for about 5 minutes until the kid jumped off, so funny!

Garrett made his own pizza & baked it, this is the final project. He had so much fun "cooking."

I forget was this is called, but basically it's a maze of these hanging foam things. Eric took him in countless times, Garrett loved it!

I highly recommend going to your nearest Children's Museum and spend a few hours, your kids will thank you.

What's for dinner? (Week of 6-20)

2010-06-21T14:06:00.000-07:00

I was asked by my cousin, "where are the recipes?" So I decided each week I will try to post a recipe for you :) Enjoy!

Sunday - (Father's Day) Chicken Fried Steak, Mashed Potatoes & Green Beans @ a friend's house
Monday - Leftover Cabbage Burgers w/ Salad
Tuesday - Leftover Jambalaya (Martha Stewart Living recipe)
Wednesday - Bar-B-Que Chicken Quesadillas w/ Salad
Thursday - Cheeseburger Macaroni W/ Green Beans
Friday - Sesame Peanut Noodles w/ Asian Veggies
Saturday - Dinner out at Persian Room to celebrate Eric's B-Day w/ friends

Breakfast:
Baked Oatmeal w/ Blueberries
Yield 8-12 serving
1 cup applesauce (can sub. oil or butter)
2 Tbsp Oil
1 cup sugar
4 eggs
6 cups oats
4 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 cups milk
1 Cup fruit of choice (diced apple, strawberry, or blueberries~experiment)

1.) Preheat oven 375 degrees
2.) Combine ingredients in order listed & pour into a greased 9x13 pan.
3.) Bake for 30-40 min.
4.) Serve w/ butter, brown sugar & milk if you like

*This is a great dish to prepare the night before and refrigerate and make the next morning.

San Diego, Sea World & Friends

2010-06-15T14:36:00.000-07:00

Over Memorial Day weekend we decided to take Garrett to Sea World for his birthday. Some of our friends decided to join us which made it that much better! Not to mention I got to cross off another thing off of my "Summer Challenge" list.

The drive was six hours from Phoenix to San Diego, with 1 stop in Yuma to eat lunch and let Garrett get out some energy in the play area. Garrett only cried one time because he was tired and then he fell asleep. I was so proud of him!

We met up with some friends that night for dinner in downtown San Diego at The Old Spaghetti Factory. While we waited for our table we watched the street performers. Garrett was LOVING it and decided to go dance and then another little girl joined him. They were the hit of the street for 20 full minutes!

Our hotel room was really nice and roomy and even had a balcony. Garrett enjoyed the "hotel life".

Here are the sweet seals barking and begging for food.

We were waiting to see Shamu in the show "Believe". It was such an amazing show, these whales are so beautiful & Garrett was mesmerized.

Here is Eric holding a star fish for Garrett to touch. Garrett was trying to pick them up and was squeezing them a bit too hard, so daddy took over :)

At Sea World they have a whole Sesame Street playland area, "The Bay of Play." All the kids were having a fantastic time.

Jacey, Garrett & Alyssa taking a break.

Our happy family!

On Sunday we drove to Brea, CA to go visit our friends. They hosted a Bar-B-Que for all of us and tons of people came. It was so great to see everyone. Unfortunately I hardly took any pictures while we were there.

Jon & Eric taking a break from pool volleyball w/ all the guys.

Jacey & Garrett playing in the pool.

It was such a wonderful vacation and so glad that we did it. California is always a great place to visit!

What's for dinner? (week of 6-13-10)

2010-06-14T14:12:00.000-07:00

It's my husband's birthday on Friday so I have planned a week full of his favorites!

Sunday - Red Chili Beef Burritos w/ Refried Beans
Monday - Baked Potato Bar
Tuesday - Chicken Ranch Pizza w/ Homemade Crust & Fresh Green Beans
Wednesday - Sweet & Sour Chicken w/ Asian Veggies
Thursday - Red Robin : for Eric's Free Birthday Burger
Friday - Cabbage Burgers w/ Roasted Potatoes & Apple Pie
Saturday - Jumbalaya

Lunches: Turkey & Avacado Wraps w/ Fresh Fruit
Bean & Cheese Burritos w/ Fresh Fruit

Desserts: Apricot-Honey Sponge Cake
Apple Pie

If you need more meal planning inspiration, please visit I'm An Organizing Junkie for her Meal Plam Mondays!

What's for dinner? (week of 5-23-10)

2010-05-23T17:18:00.000-07:00

Sunday - Angel Hair Pasta w/ Roasted Tomatoes and Cannellini Beans
Monday - Broccoli & Bacon Strata
Tuesday - Crockpot: Indonesian Chicken over Rice (didn't make it last week)
Wednesday - Italian Sausage Calzones w/ my homemade pizza dough
Thursday - Tacos @ my parents house for a family dinner
Friday - San Diego: Possible dinner on the Beach!
Saturday - Sea World!

We are taking Garrett to San Diego & Sea World for his birthday for Memorial weekend (post to come)!

*I have linked this meal plan to I'm an Organizing Junkie for her Meal Plan Monday, check it out!

Imagination Avenue

2010-05-19T13:33:00.000-07:00

Last week I took Garrett to my parents house to spend some time with them and to stay over night. I decided while I was there I would cross something off my Summer Challenge list and take him to Imagination Avenue. I had never heard of this place until I saw it on another blog. I was wishing I had known about it sooner.

Garrett had such a great time playing in all the different little rooms. I wasn't as impressed with it as I thought I would be, however. It was a little small, and each individual room would only allow for 2-3 children. But, Garrett could have stayed all day & that's what counts. It gave us something to do together and he was so happy he didn't want to leave even after 2 hours of fun.

He "baked" me some sweets and sat down to "eat" them with me.

He loved telling me the shape of each cookie cutter.

He had so much fun in the "grocery store" taking out every item and placing them into the cart. He told me what each fruit and vegetable was. He's so smart he actually knew 90% of them!

He was making me a hot dog & hamburger w/ "dip" (ketchup).

He was talking into the walkie-talkie to his "gramma". He must have thought it was a telephone.

All in all it was a great time. The next time we go I would love to do a playdate, because the children keep themselves busy and the adults basically just sit around watching. Would be a great chance for the mommies to actually talk!

What's for dinner? (week of 5-16-10)

2010-05-15T15:38:00.000-07:00

Sunday - On the Grill: Cheeseburgers & Corn on the Cobb
Monday - Chicken & Penne w/ Pumpkin Cream Sauce
Tuesday - *Crock-pot: Indonesian Chicken w/ Peanut Sauce over Rice
Wednesday - Lasagna Roll-Ups w/ Spicy Marinara Sauce & Broccoli on the side
Thursday - Leftovers ( I have an evening meeting)
Friday - Daddy/Son night (I have a girl's night out)
Saturday - Bar-B-Que at a friends house!

*My goal for the summer is to use the crock-pot once a week and to try and grill more. This will help eliminate additional heat in the AZ summer.

I have linked this meal plan to I'm an Organizing Junkie for her Menu Plan Monday, check it out!

Summer Challenge

2010-05-14T12:36:00.001-07:00

I have given myself/family a summer challenge. Since it is so hot in AZ it's hard to be outside, and I hate being stuck indoors with nothing to do, so I have found a few places that I want to go with Garrett that I think will be fun for Eric and I too. Or for playdates w/ some of Garrett's friends. Yes, now that he is 2, he has actual friends :)

The challenge is to go to 2-4 different places each month for 4 months; May-August.

Here is my list & feel free to leave a comment and give me some suggestions of other places for us to go. I still need 2-4 more places.

McCormick Stillman Railroad Park (done)
Imagination Avenue (done & pics to come)
Sea World
The Beach
AZ Science Center
Children's Museum for the Free 1st Friday
Challenger Space Center
Hall of Flame Firefighting Museum
Indoor Mini-Golf

Cock-a-doodle doo, Garrett is two!

2010-05-09T16:12:00.001-07:00

Garrett loves animals, especially horses. Everything needs to be a horsey. I decided to throw him a "Barnyard Bash" with all the fun barn animals and especially horses. We were so blessed to have 30 of our family and friends to help celebrate Garrett's birthday. It was the best party I have ever thrown. It was very fun, relaxed and stress free. My sweet mother came over the day before to help me prep all the food for the party. She was such a tremendous help, I got almost all of the food prepped & that evening Eric and I cleaned, then decorated. The morning of, all I had to do was plate everything and make the drinks.

The party started at 10am, so I opted to do 3 rounds of food instead of having it all at the same time, which really was a great idea & cut down on the stress of needing everything ready at the same time. I had a veggie tray, fruit tray & chips n' dip for the apps. Pigs n' a blanket, Bar-B-Que beef sandwhiches, turkey tortilla roll-ups and peanut butter and jelly roll-ups were the main course with sides of cowboy beans and pasta salad.

I put bandannas on the pitchers to "cowboy" them up!

I was really happy with all of the decorations I found. These party hats are adorable. The favor bags consisted of a little 10-page coloring book that matched the bag, a barn animal, a whistle, cowboy type stickers, and a fun dip :)

This was the centerpiece for the table so the kids could play with it.

We had 3 activities for the kids to do, this bean bag toss game pictured above. Balloons w/ animal face stickers (pig, cow & chicken) for the kids to blow up and decorate. The balloons were a HUGE hit, I forgot to take a picture but the kids decorated and played w/ them for at least 20 minutes. The third activity was planting seeds like a farmer. We got little clay pots, soil & flower seeds for them to plant and take home. They really enjoyed this and it was a nice touch that went along with the theme.

Here's Garrett eating lunch with his cousins, Lemon & Sparrowe. He was so happy, this was probably the best day of his life :)

Here's my best-friend's girls, Reagan & Mati playing in the tunnels. Unfortunately this is one of the only pictures I got of the backyard ambiance. It looked so good & the kids were super excited about it. We has hay bales out for them to play on, a picnic blanket, a slide, a child sized 4-wheeler, tunnels, etc.

So here is the main event, the cake! I was so pleased with the way it all came out, not to mention it tasted delicious. The red barn cake was chocolate & the animal cupcakes were white cake, both with cream cheese frosting. I had 8 cupcakes of each animal, pigs, sheep & chicks. I used mini-marshmallows for the sheep and I food colored coconut for the chicks. I am so glad I made it myself, I almost bought one at the store because I was afraid I would mess it up.

Garrett loved everyone singing to him, he's such a ham! One of the kids blew out the candles for him, so I had to relight them quickly so he could do it himself, we have been practicing.

We got Garrett his first tricycle. It is Mickey Mouse and it plays music sings songs, lights up, just perfect for Garrett.

Yee Haw! My parents got him this horse. Oh my goodness was he thrilled. He bounced forever.

But, his favorite gift of the day was this skateboard & helmet. He has been asking me for a skateboard since he was 18 mo. & a helmet since about 21 mo. He played with it all afternoon, we couldn't get him to go outside with us, and he went to bed an hour late.

We had such a fabulous day w/ all the people who love us and our son. It was a great day & I feel truly blessed.

Garrett's Growing Up!

2010-04-29T14:52:00.000-07:00

Garrett will be 2 years old next week. Wow, time sure does fly. I am amazed everyday by how much he has grown in these past 2 years. He really is no longer a baby. He is talking all the time, it cracks me up. I enjoy listening to him, he so funny. It amazes me how much information he retains and then spits out at a later time. It's like this whole past year he has been storing everything I've been teaching him up, and now he is using it in everyday life. I'm surprised everyday by something he does or says. For example, yesterday he bumped into me and he said, "excuse me." Really??? I didn't even know he knew that!
Here are a few things about him that I wanted to share :)

He is obsessed with skateboards, he wants one sooo bad. He finds anything he can inside or outside of the house and pretends it is a skateboard. It is very cute and very annoying. He loves them so much, we had to get him one for his birthday.

He does the cutest things. He picked up my cell phone yesterday and pretended to call Eric. He said, "Hello Dada. Horsey, goat, yes. Bye, bye!" What??? Too funny! I always know what's on his mind, horses (most animals really, or skateboards).

He is extremely smart. He can count to 19, he know most shapes, most of the alphabet and all the colors. I think his favorite color is black, he always picks out his black shoes to wear and when I ask him what color he wants to wear he says black.

He has recently decided that he needs friends to sleep w/ him. So at nap time & night time he picks 1 stuffed animal to go to bed with him, it's usually the same 3 he trades off with. When he wakes up he is so happy to see his friend I can hear him in there talking to them :)

That's enough about Garrett for today, next week I'll post all about his amazing Barnyard Bash!

Finding Courage

2010-04-25T15:50:00.000-07:00

I have begun to realize that if I want to do something, I can't count on others to do them with me, or to ask me to do something with them, so I am now just doing it on my own. Being the co-dependant that I am I don't often enjoy doing things on my own, so I have really been branching out.

The first thing on my list to try on my own was MOPS (mother's of preschoolers), 2 years ago and that has worked out wonderfully and I have made some great friends.
And that was basically it for the past 2 years, short of going to the store and getting my eyebrows waxed, I haven't done anything on my own.

So a few months ago, for the umpteenth time, I was again upset because a friend did something I wanted to do w/out me. So I prayed about it and decided to find the courage to do things on my own. I have made a list of interests etc. and have started to tackle it.

Now, every Tuesday morning I take Garrett to the local library for their toddler story/song time and then to the park after to play. It has been such a rewarding experience for me to see his growth from these story times. He now sings along with the songs and knows the hand movements. He now sits quietly and listens to the story being read. In contrast to the the first few times when he would just sort of run around the room etc.

Last week I took my very first cooking class. Cooking and baking have always been a passion of mine. Something I have enjoyed doing as long as I can remember. After I was married I even toyed w/ the idea of going to Culinary School, but Eric and I thought it would be wasting money since I would just being staying home once we had a child. So, when I read an article about local cooking schools last February I jumped at the chance to take a class. Again, I asked a couple people to take it with me and of course they said no. At first I was upset thinking, once again I won't be able to do something I really want to do because no one will go with me, then it hit me GO ALONE! So, I called and registered. When Eric came home that evening and found out he was shocked and sad for me to have to go alone, but also impressed that I decided to do it. It was such a great experience, that I have decided to try to take one class every month, schedule permitting.

By being fearful of doing things on my own I have really been missing out on wonderful new experiences and meeting new people through them. God is stretching me and I like it!
It does make me sad however to not have a friend to enjoy these things with, but God is always teaching me something new, so here's to losing my co-dependence and gaining some independence. Courage through Christ!

Wildlife World Zoo

2010-04-22T13:44:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks ago Eric and I took Garrett to the Wildlife World Zoo & Aquarium. I had already taken Garrett there w/ a friend a month prior & I could tell he remembered being there. It was such a great family day. We went right when they opened, so all the animals were out and about. We got to see a lot of them eat their breakfast. The boys watched an alligator get fed dead rats, obviously I did not watch that :) but Eric LOVED it.

Now that Garrett is talking, it is so fun to hear him say all the animals names, run over to them and get really excited. Next to horses, giraffes are his favorite animal. Garrett was ecstatic when he got to feed the giraffe, it was priceless.
Then we walked over to the kid area, there is a large play structure and a small petting zoo. Eric took Garrett in and he walked right over and talked to the baby goat & deer. The deer must have been teething or something because he kept biting every one's shirts, even the babies! Next to the petting zoo, there was an area where you could "pet" the tortoises. I loved this area :) One walked right over my foot!
Lastly, we went to the Aquarium. They have 2 areas where you can touch the sea life. Garrett touched the star fish & sea urchins. Eric got to touch some sort of shark. Of course, I touched nothing, being the big scardy cat that I am :) Oh, and Garrett refused to take his sunglasses off inside the Aquarium! He is a stubborn boy!
It was a fantastic days w/ my boys creating fun memories.

Mushrooms

2010-04-19T13:14:00.000-07:00

Are you tired of your mushrooms turning brown before you can use them? I have a great tip.
As soon as you bring them home from the store, take them out of the package and put them in a brown paper bag, roll it up tight and put it in the fridge. They will last a little longer.
Also, you shouldn't wash your mushrooms, you should just wipe them clean w/ a paper towel or a kitchen towel.

Silpat

2010-04-15T07:34:00.000-07:00

Anyone use, have, or heard of the Silpat mat?
I LOVE this thing. I got it for Christmas from my sweet husband & it is now one of my favorite kitchen items! It is a non-stick mat to use when baking. Baking anything from cookies to fish sticks. And when I say non-stick, seriously it is non-stick. The very best product out there & so much better than having to cut parchment paper to size.
Also, when baking anything greasy, all the grease drips right off and doesn't accumulate on the food for you to blot off ~ Fantastic!

If you don't have one, take your BB&B coupon and go pick one up, NOW! :)

Revelations & Rambles

2010-04-14T14:04:00.000-07:00

These past few months have been crazy for my little family; I feel like I just got off a roller coaster. Things are finally feeling settled and I got a bug to start blogging again. Especially since I can not wait to share all of Garrett's upcoming b-day party pics, it's gonna be a blow out :)

God has been revealing many things to me through my daily prayer life, church & my MOPS (mothers of preschoolers) group. God has been answering my prayers quickly as of late it seems. Which for an impatient person like me is fantastic. Some answers are no, some are yes, and some are filled with being content.
Contentment, hmm what's that? Anyone who knows me, knows I am rarely content for long. Praise God, I am now (at least for the time being)! I have been praying more thoughtfully and specifically over the last few months & boy was that the key. God is always teaching us, and for me, He has been teaching me what is really important for me & my family and His will for us. I am coming to realize (this is hard for me) that it is not fair to me, to compare myself to others; I just get hurt. I need to want what God wants for me & not what he wants for others. Not to mention the fact that most people aren't trying to live a Christ like life, so why would I want that, right?!!!

So, back to more & exciting revelations. I was just praying last night that God would reveal to me what the next phase in my life would be, whether I go back for my Masters, get a job, or ??? So, this morning I had a steering team meeting with my MOPS group. (let me backtrack)I joined the group for the 2nd half of the year 2 years ago. At the end of that year I was asked to be a Discussion Group Leader and lead a table for the following year (this year-we coincide w/ the school year). I was very flatter and excited, I had only been there a few months and wasn't super involved because Garrett was so young.
Well, at the meeting this morning I was asked to be the Creative Director & Social Coordinator. They usually give these positions to 2 different people, but thought I would be great for both & would give me a team to delegate to. Of course I said yes & am super excited! God answered my prayer in less than 24 hours on this one :) This will keep me busy throughout the summer and for the upcoming year. I feel so blessed to have these women in my life. For the first time in my life I feel truly accepted, loved, not judged, and understood by these women. It is a wonderful feeling and something I have been praying for for nearly 25 years.
Praise God, He is good!

It's been a while...

2009-08-03T16:20:00.000-07:00

Hi! It has been a while since I have posted anything. I haven't had much motivation or encouragment to blog. I just wanted to do a quick post to say "I'm back" :)

Blog posts to come:

Family vacation to Wisconsin, w/ tons of great pic!
Meal plans & recipes
How to make your own table runners

Michigan Trip w/ Pictures Galore!

2009-06-24T19:35:00.001-07:00

Last month (actually the day of my last post) I took Garrett to Michigan, along with my parents, to visit my Grandmother, sans Eric. We were there for 7 days. It was so wonderful to be able to see my son with his Great-Grandmother. Family is extremely important to me and I hope to instill this in Garrett as well. My Grandmother (my dad's mom) has lived in Michigan my whole life and I have only seen her a handful of times, so we are not close, but she is my only living grandparent, which made the trip even more special for me. I wanted to plant memories in my mind and document with video and pictures for Garrett so he can see a piece of his family history when he is an adult.

Garrett sitting with Grandpa before take off on his very first airplane trip! I was a little nervous about how Garrett would act on the plane ride & how the other passengers would re-act to him (and to me). It was a night flight so I knew the passengers would want some quiet. Luckily it was Garrett's bedtime, so as we took off I put him in his car seat and he went to sleep. 45 minutes into the flight he woke up and cried (screamed) on and off for about 30 minutes. Finally I just took him out of his car seat and held him. He was much happier to be awake, so my parents and I took turns holding him and giving him snacks. He was great for the rest of the flight!

4 Generations of Zalots!

I walked into the living room and Grandma was holding Garrett, I was little surprise since she's in her 80's I thought he might be too heavy for her, but she held him more than I expected :) Sitting in the chair with them is her little 6 lb. dog Molly. Garrett and Molly played together quite a bit throughout the trip.

Garrett was having so much fun playing in the kitchen. He loved all the knobs on the drawers, it kept him entertained while I cooked his breakfast!

She had this tiny bathroom, with an even tinier shower. Garrett played in it every chance he got. He kept climbing in and out and would look at me and laugh. What a cutie!

Something else to keep him entertained, my suitcase. He had a great time climbing in and out. So by the end of the trip I removed all my clothing and just kept toys in their for him to "find" when he opened it :)

Can you see the resemblance? My dad looks just like my grandmother & after spending time all together I could definitely see the resemblance in my face as well, which surprisingly made me happy. The features I hated most on my face I now love (which has given me new features to hate ~ gotta love being a woman)!

This was our last day, right before we left for the airport. That was a sad time for me realizing that I may not see my grandmother again.

I had mixed emotions about going, but all in all I am glad I went, it created memories that I will carry with me forever. No regrets!

Girl's Night Out!

2009-05-28T09:25:00.000-07:00

I have really been needing some "girl time," I was getting pretty stressed. So my friend Christina suggested a Girl's Night Out! She lives about an hour away, so we packed up our stuff to stay the night. The husband's stayed at her house and watched the babies while we had a nice evening of dinner and dancing. Then the next morning all the guys played golf while we had breakfast and lounged around with the babies. It was a pretty good set up!

We had Sushi for dinner, a favorite of all the girls, and then off to a nearby club for dancing and bonding time. It was so much fun and I can't wait to do it again. It's nice to have some time apart from being a wife and mother to discover your sense of self.

Me & Liz

Here is Candida and Christina line dancing! :)

Spaghetti Squash

2009-05-27T10:10:00.000-07:00

I promised that I would tell you all how my Spaghetti Squash turned out; it was amazing! Eric was skeptical that the squash would actually look like spaghetti noodles and he thought the sauce would be weird on the squash. I was just trying to have a positive attitude, hoping we wouldn't hate it :)

I took pictures so you can see, it was so delicious, healthy and super easy to make.

Here is how I made it:

1.) Preheat oven 400 degrees. Cut the spaghetti squash in half lengthwise, drizzle a tablespoon of olive oil on each half and sprinkle w/ salt and pepper. Place cut side down on a baking sheet and roast for 40-45 min or until flesh is tender.

2.) While squash is roasting make your desire sauce and let simmer until squash is ready.
I made a tomato based sauce with ground beef, onions, mushrooms and green bell pepper.

3.) Take squash out of the oven and use a fork to pull the strands away from the skin. Leave in the shell.

4.) Spoon sauce over the squash and top with fresh basil, fresh parsley and Parmesan Cheese.

5.) Enjoy!

What's for dinner? (week of 5-24)

2009-05-25T08:53:00.000-07:00

Sunday - Leftovers for me (Eric had a poker night with some friends)
Monday - Brats on the grill, rice & broccoli, chips & queso dip, Mango Margaritas!
Tuesday - Green chili beef enchilada casserole & corn
Wednesday - Chicken pot pie w/ red potatoes & veggies, homemade cheesy biscuits on the side
Thursday - Soup & Sandwiches (then off to the airport)
Friday - Eric only - leftover Enchilada Casserole
Saturday - Eric only - Dinner at a friends

*Baked good for the week : Banana Nut Bread
**Dessert for the week: Double Chocolate Covered Pretzel Peanut Butter Cookies
If I am not too tired I am going to attempt these today!

Garrett and I are leaving Thursday evening to take a trip to Michigan. We are visiting my grandma, Garrett's great-grandma. Eric will be staying at home and I have been stockpiling some meals for him in the freezer. Banana Nut Bread is his favorite, so I will make that for him before we go :)

Happy Days!

2009-05-24T21:11:00.000-07:00

Garrett got several toys for his birthday; he loves them all. He is at such a fun age exploring and learning something new each day. These great toys are providing him with hours of fun, which is leaving me with a bit more extra time, yea!

Here are Garrett and daddy playing with the super fun Water Table. This this provides endless entertainment! Garrett loves to be wet, he just laughs :)

My mom got Garrett this great all star sports center that plays music, claps when you make a basket & lights up numbers w/ each basket. You can see that Garrett loves to spin the football as fast as he can!

Here, he has just made a basket, a skill that he has recently learned.

CHEESEBURGERS? OH MY!!!

Last week I was really craving one of those little cheeseburgers from McDonald's. I decided, since Garrett is now one, has 11 teeth and pretty much eats everything, that he could have one too! So this is his very first bite of a fast food burger... is that a bad mom? :)

He was loving the cheeseburger, he couldn't get enough of it!

Eric and I are having so much fun with our newly 1 year old toddler. Thanks for sharing in this journey. We really love reading all of your comments you post on our blog!

2 More?

2009-05-20T16:30:00.000-07:00

This morning I was doing my morning ritual of tackling Garrett to the ground to change his diaper. He is in this wonderful stage where he twists his body every which way and then crawls away so I can't change him, I'm usually half way through the process when he starts doing this so there's generally poop involved; fun times!
Anyway, while he was screaming I noticed a tooth poking through, a molar on the bottom. So awhile later I stick my finger in to check things out and sure enough, there are 2 molars! So now he has 3 molars and a total of 11 teeth, wow! So, needless to say I don't have any food restrictions anymore, I feed him whatever I am eating basically. Yesterday he even tried shrimp :)

What's for dinner? (Week of 5/17)

2009-05-18T09:14:00.000-07:00

Breakfast for the week : Baked Oatmeal w/ Apples (this is the most delicious thing I have ever made! Garrett just loves it, he bounces up and down in his seat the whole time I feed him.) I'll post the recipe later
Wednesday Breakfast Brunch @ MOPS - Apple Cinnamon Puff Pancake (I can't wait to make this it looks fantastic!)

Sunday - Bar-B-Que at a friends house
Monday - Slow Cooker Honey Mustard Lime Chicken w/ rice and mixed veggies
Tuesday - Shrimp Scampi
Wednesday - Spaghetti Squash w/Super Thick Bolognese Sauce (I have never tried spaghetti squash before, I'll let you know how it turns out)
Thursday - Chicken Enchiladas w/ beans, lettuce & tomato
Friday - Sausage, tomato & peppers w/ penne pasta
Saturday - Girl's Night Out! - RA Sushi

Dessert of the Week : Strawberry Shortcake Cookies (from this month's Martha Stewart Magazine) These are so delicious and really do taste like shortcakes and for a MS recipe, they were surprisingly easy.

Looking Back

2009-05-17T21:13:00.000-07:00

After posting about Garrett's 1st Birthday got me thinking about when he was a newborn. He was so tiny, sweet and cuddly. I miss the days when the babies just curl up on your chest when you hold them. Here are a few pics of Garrett throughout the year.

This was at one of my baby showers. I had Garrett 3 weeks later and my stomach was already super huge!

Garrett was jaundiced, so he had to spend the night in the nursery under these lights to simulate the sun. It was very sad, however the little glasses he had to wear were adorable.

For the first couple months he used to pucker his lips and make this little "kissy"face.

Having fun with some tummy time.

He used to smile and coo at this little owl on his swing, so cute!

He loves to play with balls, lots of fun :)

Auntie Brooke made this adorable hat.

He loves to stand up on everything, especially the couch because he can bounce!

I hope you enjoyed this little look back on the stages in Garrett's life.

Garrett's 1st Birthday!

2009-05-16T20:06:00.000-07:00

This is a little late, I took a week off from using the computer. I've been so busy that I needed a break.

We celebrated Garrett's birthday on Saturday, May 9th, at our house. All of our closest family and friends came over. It was such a fun day! Since Garrett loves water so much, I decided to have a water party. I bought him a water table & the most adorable baby pool that you hook up to the hose and it has little sprinklers that shoot out.

Since the AZ sun is so bright and hot, my smart husband Eric, set up our camping gazebo so the kids wouldn't get sunburned. Inside the gazebo on the right is Garrett standing up playing at the water table. To the left is the pool with Quincy (Candida's baby) and Tyler (Christina's baby). Quincy absolutely loved the little pool and was swimming around like a fish. Tyler was a bit unsure about the pool and got out pretty quickly.

Ezra loved helping Garrett play in the water table. He thought it was pretty great :)

Grandma Zalot (my mom) is helping Garrett play with the sprinklers in the pool. He was so funny, he kept trying to grab the shooting water.

This picture is a little fuzzy because it is taken through the gazebo, but I thought Garrett looked so old.

Garrett is so happy to help rip open his presents. He got so many cute new outfits, books & some really great toys. He had the best time of his life. He never stopped smiling the whole day!

A family pic, we didn't get too many, we were so busy with the festivities.

This picture is hilarious. So I put the cake out in front of him and he just looked at me not knowing what to do. I stabbed it with a spoon to get him going and he ate the spoon a bit, then he decided to touch the cake. He didn't like the way it felt but he wanted to eat it, so he decided to just dig in with his face! He was eating it like a dog, we all were cracking up. Eric took some great video of it I can't wait to watch it over and over each year :) . It was such a happy day for all of us, my baby is now a toddler, look out world!

Garrett gets his cast off!

2009-05-09T22:13:00.000-07:00

This has been such a busy week preparing for Garrett's 1st birthday and taking him to his doctor's appointments. On Thursday, I drove out to Mesa for Garrett to get his cast off. It was a 3 part process.

1. They took us back, I held Garrett on my lap and the nurse used this electric saw and buzzed off the cast. Garrett let out a little cry at first because of the noise, but then he just watched with interest. I was so proud of the way he handled it, like a big boy.

2. They did x-rays on his leg to make sure the fracture was repaired. The last time Garrett got x-rays, he screamed and it was a horrible process. This time the nurse gave him a little snack (Teddy Grahams) and he was happy, he hardly put up a fuss at all.

3. We met with the Doctor who showed me the x-rays. The fracture healed perfectly. New bone has grown and the doctor said it will be stronger than before. Praise the Lord!

When we got home from the appointment, Garrett kept standing up and sitting down, over and over. He was very happy to have the cast off and try out his leg :)

His leg was super dry and flaky when the cast came off. This picture below was taken after 3 applications of lotion & it is still really gross. Eric gave him a bath that night and the next day most of the flaking was gone.

On Friday, his birthday, he had his 1 year well check. If you remember his 9 month well check he lost weight, then he had a weight check appointment when he was 10 1/2 months, he gained almost a pound. Well at this appointment, my little buddy gained 2 more pounds, yea! He now weighs 17.5 pounds. The doctor is happy and I am relieved.

What's for dinner (week of 5/3)?

2009-05-03T18:10:00.000-07:00

Sunday - Classic Grilled Cheese & Tomato Soup
Monday - Vegetable & Cheddar Quiche
Tuesday - Cinco de Mayo Potluck w/ our Bible Study
Wednesday - Greek Tortellini Soup & Garlic Bread
Thursday - Fettuccine Alfredo w/ Chicken, Mushrooms & Brocciflower
Friday - Homemade Mushroom, Tomato, & Pepper Pizza w/ a Garden Salad
Saturday - Garrett's 1st Birthday Party (subs, sides & cake)

Garrett Grows Up

2009-04-30T09:19:00.000-07:00

As Garrett's first birthday is fast approaching, my tiny baby is becoming a toddler. He has grown in many areas weight & hieght, independence, motor developement & brain development. It makes me proud to realize that I am a good mother after all. The attachment anxiety that he went through made me feel horrible and embarrased to go anywhere with him, but with God's help I got throught it and so did Garrett. The result of that has made him a more secure and happy person.

I can't belive the strides he has made in only 1 month. Garrett is so much more independent. He loves exploring everything. He wants to stand up all the time now, anything that he can find to pull himself up on, he will. He even climbed all the way up onto the first step of our stair case. It's about time to put up the baby gate (yuck, such a hassle).

Garrett has started talking so much more and really trying to communicate w/ me. He understands so much more that I thought & he really follows directins when I tell him to do something, it's amazing! Last week he was eating his snack and grunting for more, so I asked him to say, "more please mama," as I usually do, but this time he said, "mama" as a reply. This kid is so smart. When he is eating his lunch or dinner, he tries to say more. When Eric comes home, he says, "dada" to greet him. It really is astonishing. It's like he was storing up all this information and then decided to spit it all out at once. A couple days ago he started clapping a ton and waving to people.

He has also started noticing tiny buttons on everything and is now pushing them, which is great for me since I was always having to do it for him for the toy to make noise. When he wants me to change the channel on the remote to his beloved Moose & Zee, he grabs the remote and presses buttons! Hilarious! He's also been getting two alike objects (2 balls, 2 stars, etc.) and banging them together to make noise. Man, this kid is so smart it blows my mind!

This morning I was reading him books and pointing to the facial features in the book and then the same features on my face. Meanwhile he was touching the features on his face as I named them. Can you believe it?! Do I have a genius on my hands? Should I enroll him in a prodigy school? Just kidding :)

I am looking forward to this new stage in our lives, it will be so much fun. Look out world, here come Garrett, just wait until his cast comes off to see what else he'll do!

Spicy Tomatillo Chicken in the Crock-Pot

2009-04-27T10:40:00.000-07:00

In honor of Cinco de Mayo coming up & the Ultimate Recipe Swap at http://www.lifeasmom.com/ (check it out for tons more yummy Mexican recipes) here is a Mexican recipe that I adapted to make my own.

It is really hard cooking for 2. Most of the recipes I find are for about 8. I generally halve the recipe, but on occasion is is just more cost effective to prepare the whole recipe.

About a month or so ago I got a ton of tomatillos from the Bountiful Baskets Food Co-op I participate in, and I had no idea what to do w/ them. My friend who got the same basket was making this yummy crock-pot chicken w/ them. I made it (halved the recipe) and we loved it. 2 weeks ago I got these tomatillos again. I was smarter about my meal plan. This 1 recipe gave me 3 dinners.
I served the chicken the first night w/ tortillas and beans. A couple days later I made them into Quesadillas, the third time, which is this Friday will be using the last of the leftovers for Chicken Taco Soup from Rachael Ray's Yum-O Cookbook.

Spicy Tomatillo Chicken in the Crock-Pot
-Serves 8
10 large tomatillos
2 jalapeno peppers
1/2 diced onion
3 garlic cloves
4 chicken breasts
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp salt
1 chicken bouillon cube

1. Boil tomatillos & jalapenos in water for 15 min. Take out cut off all stems & peel tomatillos.
Put them in a food processor or blender and blend for about 15 sec. You'll want it to be chunky.
2. Transfer to crock-pot & all all remaining ingredients.
3. Cook on high for 3 1/2 hours, then take chicken out & shred. Put chicken back into crock-pot, stir & cook for an additional hour.
4. Serve w/ tortillas & sour cream

Meal Plan 4/26

2009-04-26T20:02:00.000-07:00

On Sundays, I like to make a more extensive recipe for dinner since Eric is home to help out with Garrett. This allows me more time to prep and cook, this also gives us leftovers for Tuesdays. On Tuesday nights we host a Bible Study in our home, so we have to eat dinner earlier than normal, which doesn't allow for much time for cooking.

Tonight I tried a new recipe; this amazingly delicious Classic Lasagna. I prepared it w/ bichamel sauce, instead of ricotta & mozzarella cheese, which makes it so heavy and greasy. I was a bit nervous Eric wouldn't like it because he loves his cheese, but it was a crowd pleaser!

Sunday - Classic Lasagna Bolognese
Monday - Potato & Beef Moussaka (a Greek dish)
Tuesday - Leftover Lasagna & Garlic Bread
Wednesday - Jambalaya
Thursday - Leftover Moussaka w/ Homemade Herb Popovers (I got new popover tins for my B-day that I want to try out)
Friday - Chicken Taco Soup
Saturday - Bar-B-Que at a friends house

Happy Birthday to Me!

2009-04-25T14:50:00.000-07:00

Yup it happened, yesterday I turned 30 (yuck)! I will quickly get over myself and focus on the positive :) I had such a wonderful day filled will love, family, friends & blessings.

I awoke to a kiss and a present from my husband... a gift certificate for a massage and eyebrow wax, YES! He already had the coffee brewing and eggs awaiting. Then we had a nice lunch planned. Eric met Garrett and I at Red Robin, where I had a coupon for a FREE Gourmet Burger from their B-day Club & a coupon to get a FREE Cold Stone Creamery ice cream next door. Since Eric met me from work he was in his uniform, as our lunch was ending our waitress came over to tell us that a couple had paid for our meal! Then the couple came over and told Eric "Thank you," for his service. What a blessing to us!

Here is Garrett, enjoying his very first taste of ice cream at Red Robin! They also gave him a balloon, which turned into hours of fun.

Later that night, my parents came over to babysit Garrett so that Eric could take me out to dinner. When we got to the restaurant, Buca di Beppo, all of my friends were sitting at the table! My sweet husband had been planning a surprise party for me for weeks! He even had a special pink cake made for me ! That really helped the whole 30 yr. depression (lol) go away :) It was a great night.

What an amazing and thoughtful man God placed in my life to set all of this up for me. I am truly blessed!

Frugal Finds

2009-04-21T08:29:00.000-07:00

I have had a few friends lately ask me how I am saving so much money and the different resources I have found to help me. I would like to share a few with you.
I have been saving about $200/ mo. on grocery shopping, meal planning & less eating out. I do this by using coupons and buying all of my produce from a food co-op instead of the grocery store.
I have also saved us about $50/ mo. by calling our phone/cable and insurance companies to renegotiate our prices. They wouldn't come down by much, but hey, that's an extra $50/mo. we didn't have before.

Bountiful Baskets Food Co-Op is amazing! Never buy grocery store produce again! Bountiful Baskets is a food co-op that buys produce direct from the grower. You are getting the same produce that the stores get for a much lower price. Since we get it direct it stays fresh much longer. I get a basket every 2 weeks and it lasts for 2-3 weeks! You get about $30-$40 worth of fruits and vegetables for $16.50! Basically you order a basket online on a Wednesday and pick it up at your closest location on a Saturday morning. They also offer delicious breads for a great bargain.

Paperback Swap is a free service that allows you to trade books you don't want any more for books you do want. I have not used this service yet because I am lacking for reading time, but I know a couple people who use it and love it. Basically you only pay for the cost to mail the book (not shipping it). You even print out the label/envelope/stamp right from your computer. Such a great frugal concept!

Swagbucks is an online search engine (uses Google) that give you points (bucks) just for searching. When you get enough bucks you can redeem them for prizes such as Amazon gift cards etc. This is not a scam I promise. They don't send you any emails either! You also get points for every person that you can get to sign up. So, if you are thinking about signing up, please do so through my referral link HERE so that I can get some bucks! :)

More to come on Money Saving Tips and Frugal Finds, so keep checking back! Also, leave a comment or question so I know what you think or what you would like to know more about.

Meal Plan 4/19

2009-04-19T18:25:00.000-07:00

Since Garrett went to the hospital last week, I didn't have time to make those yummy Ranch House Pork Chops, so I will be making them again this week. You can view the recipe from last weeks menu.

Sunday - Ranch House Pork Chops w/ rice and green beans
Monday - Spicy Chicken Chile Verde in the crock-pot w/ tortillas, rice & beans
Tuesday - Fettuccine w/ Salmon, lemon, artichokes & asparagus
Wednesday - Rollover Chile Verde Chicken from Monday night:
Chicken Quesadillas & Corn
Thursday - Fried onion topped Tuna bake
Friday - Birthday Date Night
Saturday - Birthday Party- Catered Babbo

* Dessert for the week- Strawberry Layer Cake

I try to make one baked good per week, sweet or savory. I am enjoying learning to work with yeast, etc.
I had a friend over Saturday night and had a ton of fresh strawberries. I found a recipe for this delicious Strawberry cake w/ cream cheese frosting. Here's a picture, it is moist and delicious. You are supposed to decorate w/ fresh strawberries, but I ran out of time.

Garrett broke his leg

2009-04-17T21:58:00.000-07:00

As you all know, Garrett has been teething like crazy. He has 8 teeth already and has been trying to get in all 4 molars at the same time. Sometimes they really bother him, others he doesn't seem to mind them. Monday afternoon he was acting fussy and I could feel one of his molars starting to pierce the skin, so I assumed that was his problem. We were upstairs playing and he had pulled himself up onto a toy and then wanted to get down. So, he dropped himself onto his butt per his usual, except he did this weird flip over thingy and started crying really hard. I figured he bumped his head and he would be fine in a minute. I held him for a while and he wouldn't let me put him down ALL NIGHT. If you know my child, then you know he clings to me anyway, so this wasn't that unusual. The next day I notice that he would cry when I changed his diaper, lifting his leg. I just loaded him w/ Tylenol and Oragel thinking it was his teeth bothering him. Then Wednesday morning when I got him out of his crib he was standing up but wouldn't put his right leg down, weird. I called the doctor and she told me to take him to Mendy's Place (a pediatric ER) to just get him looked at and X-rayed. She said because babies grow rapidly they can get infections in bones/joints.

I took him in and he was seen by Triage first, and he said Garrett was fine and we didn't need to come in. We then saw the doctor and got X-rays. The x-ray process was horrible. It took about 30 min and Garrett screamed the ENTIRE time. My heart went out to him, he was so scared. The doctor came back with the results and sure enough. He has a spiral fracture to his right Tibia. I couldn't believe he actually broke his leg. The doctor said this type of fracture is very common and it is even called the Toddler's Fracture. So, they gave him a temporary splint and told us to go get a cast put on the following day (Thursday).

Here he is at Mendy's Place. They gave me a baby gown to put him in, how cute is that! :) Garrett didn't like it, but I couldn't help but take a picture.

Eric was working and didn't go with us, but was so sad to see Garrett w/ the splint when we came home. He couldn't believe what had happened. Eric had been working and at school so much that he didn't realize anything was wrong w/ Garrett. I just mentioned to him that I thought his leg was bothering him.

We woke up Thursday morning and got ready to go to Phoenix Children's Hospital (PCH). I noticed that one of Garrett's molars definitely broke through the skin; everything has to happen at one for this child. We picked Eric up from work and drove downtown. We were in and out so quickly you could have missed it if you blinked. The staff there were amazing. They let me hold him while they put his cast on so he wouldn't cry and he didn't; not a tear.

What a trooper. The cast is so tiny and cute. I am glad it is only half his leg so he can still crawl around. The doctor put in some extra padding on his foot so he would be able to stand on it and even walk if he wants. The cast will only be on for 3 weeks. They will take more x-rays at that time to make sure it healed properly.

The cast doesn't seem to bother him. I am not sure he even noticed it. As soon as we came home he was crawling all around.

His mobilization is hindered however by the cast. It gets in his way when crawls through a small area or wants to go from a sitting to a crawling position & vise versa quickly. He has been a little more fussy than normal and wants to be picked up more often. But again, this could just be because of his teething as well.

I am happy that the cast will be off on May 7th, just 1 day before his 1st birthday. So he will only have to wear it for 3weeks in total.

Menu Plan 4/13

2009-04-13T19:08:00.000-07:00

I have been making weekly meal plans since I have been married. It is a huge time & money saver for our family. It also allows me to be creative and try out new recipes by planning for them, instead of being frustrated each night trying to decide what to make. I try to plan my menu on Sundays, but sometimes it falls on Mondays depending on how busy I get.

Monday - Chicken, Roasted Tomatoes & Penne in Basil Pesto Pomadoro Sauce w/ Garlic Bread
Tuesday - Shrimp Pasta Prima Vera w/ Garlic Bread
Wednesday - Mexican casserole
Thursday - Ranch House Crock Pot Pork Chops w/ Garlic Mashed Potatoes & asparagus
Friday - Leftovers
Saturday - Out to eat
Sunday - Grilled Salmon w/ dill cream sauce & roasted potatoes & vegetables

* I made the Ranch House Pork Chops once before and substituted the potatoes for brown rice and it was delicious. The pork is so tender it just falls apart, amazing!

The Cow Says...

2009-04-06T18:51:00.000-07:00

I read books to Garrett everyday. He has 4-6 books that he "allows" me to read to him, depending on his mood. He is a very particular . He has 2 great board books, one that teaches body parts, clothing & food, the other that teaches all about animal names, sounds, shapes, and colors. He absolutely loves them. I generally just read to him, touch each picture while I name them, or make the noise, etc. Lately, though I decided I could really be teaching him something. So I started touching the picture, "eyes," and asking Garrett, "where are your eyes?" and so on with the facial features. Within a day he started closing his eyes for me to touch, opening his mouth for me to touch, and tilting his head up for me to touch his nose! Amazing!

Yesterday morning I was reading him the animal book. I pointed to the cow and said, "the cow says moooooo." He immediately said, "moooo (well more like bpoooo)!!!!" Adorable, how smart is my child? I'll tell you, very :)

We went to my parents that afternoon to celebrate my brother's birthday, and Garrett was more than happy to show off his new skill. I would ask him what the cow says, I would say moo and he would promptly reply w/ his version of moo. Apparently this is the easiest animal noise for him to make :)

Aren't babies so much fun?! I think the older he gets the better mom I am becoming. He cried so much of his life, all I could really do to comfort him wa hold him and take him on walks. Now that he is getting older, he enjoys exploring new things and learning as a result.

It finally happened

2009-04-03T18:12:00.000-07:00

Everyone told me that when Garrett started eating solid food it would be very messy and get everywhere. Thus far I haven't had any problems. He is an excellent eater and grabs the food out of my hand before I can put it on the tray.

At lunch today, I gave Garrett his last bite of cottage cheese mixed with carrots and it finally happened, he spit it out IN MY FACE! Yikes. I was all dressed, hair and make-up done because we were going shopping right after lunch. All I could do was laugh because he is cute and what are you gonna do, yell at a baby?

The joys of motherhood are endless :)

What's the deal?

2009-03-30T19:20:00.000-07:00

So, I went to the ortho surgeon today for my post-op follow up. The doctor that performed my surgery is "no longer w/ the practice." Whatever that means. I was a little relieved that I could see a different doctor since my first doctor was such a jerk, terrible bed side manner.
I had to go to a different office and waited patiently, the receptionists were nice and people were getting called rather quickly. They called my name, yea! I get to find out how my knee is doing and what I need to do to make it better from a sympathetic ear. The doctor come in...

No, "Hi, how are you," etc. Just "Who was your surgeon? What's the problem?" He was so rude, insulting, and talked down to me. I left the office in tears.

What's the deal? Are doctors now just jerks? Get you in and get you out. They just don;t care at all. Last Monday I wasn't able to walk and he had no explanation for me. All he said was, "give it 6 more months before you decide that the surgery didn't work." Whoa mister! Where did he even get that I was saying that? He saw me for less than 4 min and sent me on my way.
UUUUGGGHHH!!!!!!

Spring Cleaning

2009-03-19T16:31:00.000-07:00

It's that time of year again and I am getting the itch for some spring cleaning. Now that the sun is out longer and seemingly shines brighter, my once thought of clean house is rather filthy. So I started a list (me a list, never). I thought I would share my list with you in hopes of motivating you to do the same. I have picked a couple to do each day. I have found this to be very good for my dieting goal as well! More time cleaning and less time eating; plus it helps burn calories especially if you are carrying a baby around in a Baby Bjorn.
Clean...
Baseboards
Window sills & moldings
Floors
Bathroom doors
kitchen cabinets inside & out
Attach child safety latches
polish silver
stainless steel appliances
Wash silk plants
ceiling fans.

Let me know if you have spring cleaning fever of your own and what is the craziest thing you're going to clean & I'll join in!

Back to School

2009-03-18T13:32:00.000-07:00

Eric started back to school this week. He is taking one class at a time for 6-8 weeks each. Right now he is taking a math class which is every Monday and Wednesday nights. These are very long days for both of us. Eric goes to work at 6:30am, after work he goes to the gym, then his class starts at 4:50pm. He doesn't get home until about 8pm. This means I am home alone ALL day w/ Garrett and then he goes to bed before Eric gets home. I am so proud of Eric for being motivated to go back to school, I know how hard it is. Selfishly I am just wishing he could be home so I could have that 1/2 hour break before dinner :)

Milestones, Kisses & Festivals, Oh My!

2009-03-15T09:51:00.000-07:00

Last week was a HUGE week developmentally for Garrett.
As you read in the last post, on Sunday he stood up in the crib for the first time; now he is pulling himself up to stand on everything and then gives me his super cheesy smile w/ all those teeth. Speaking of teeth, he got ANOTHER ONE. Now he has 8, 4 top and 4 bottom. This kid keep poppin' 'em out! Then, on Wednesday, he went from a crawling position to a sitting position. I wasn't sure if he would ever sit by himself :)
Then He started giving kisses. On Thursday after his late nap, we were sitting on the couch and he climbed up to give me a kiss, but not just one, 5! He just kept giving them, sooo sweet:)

Yesterday, we went to a Hawaiian Festival in Tempe. It was fun. We got to hang out with some friends and ate some good food. It was pretty hot however and typically I got a sunburn. But, Garrett loved it. He laughed at all the people and just had a great time, I guess he is going to be a social butterfly like his parents :)

So Big!

2009-03-08T19:37:00.000-07:00

This morning I woke up to an adorable sound coming from the baby monitor. When Garrett wakes up he likes to play and talk. The sweet noises turned fussy rather quickly, then to a cry.
I go into Garrett's room to get him and there he is, SO BIG... He is standing up in his crib! This is the first time he has ever done this. I yell out to Eric, who is sleeping, "Come in here Garrett is standing up!" He runs in and then says, "leave him there, I'll go get the camera." Meanwhile, Garrett is staring at me not sure why we are so excited and wanting to know why I wont just pick him up and feed him! :) So darn cute this baby!!!

Then, before bed I was giving him a bath and he decided that he would reach out of his baby tub and grab the edge of the real tub and stand up. Now he thinks he's a big boy and can stand up on everything!

I absolutely love being a mom and am so happy that God chose me to be Garrett's mother. He is such a joy and it is so amazing to watch all of these milestones with such excitement.

***Pictures will come soon***

Saving Money

2009-03-06T08:57:00.000-08:00

My new year"s resolution was to find creative ways to save our family money. I actually started my quest before the new year, but these past couple months I have made it my "job" to cut $$ from our budget.
I have been doing really well in my opinion. I shop way less. I have saved us $100 a month on groceries. I only buy things if I have a coupon and this is not just for the grocery store, but for all retail. And for Garrett's birthday I have decided to shop on Craigslist and ebay for ultimate savings.

I want to know what are some of your money savers? Anything that could help my family?
Post your comments and I will try them out!

Nutritionist

2009-03-05T11:58:00.000-08:00

We took Garrett in for his routine 9 month check up a couple weeks ago. Well... he actually lost weight since his 6 month check up. Needless to say we were a little worried. The doctor has us going back in for a weight check in a couple weeks . So, I have been basically loading the kid up on feed and even sneaking formula into his morning cereal trying to fatten him up!

This morning, we went to go see a nutritionist. I brought in a sample menu of what we feed him and a list of all the foods he has ever had. The nutritionist said that all the foods I am giving him is great. She said not to worry maybe his is just little.

So I am just laying it in God's hands and that's that!

Hallelujah!

2009-03-04T14:38:00.000-08:00

Praise God almighty, Hallelujah; the separation anxiety is over!!!

For those of you who don't know, the past 3 month Garrett developed a horrendous case of separation anxiety. He would scream if I walked a foot away from him, let alone be able to use the rest room with out a temper tantrum. The crawling and clawing at my feet was cute for a few days. But when it lasted a week I knew something was just wrong. I talked to everyone I knew about what he was going through. No one seemed to know that it was in fact separation anxiety. My amazing husband, Eric, actually researched it and told me what was going on. Then I was able to find a solution for the problem. It is always easier to accept a situation if you know it has a diagnosis and it is temporary.

Well, last week Garrett realized that he can pull himself up onto his knees and he loves it. Now, he plays independently, yea! He crawls all around the house discovering new things each day, the stairs for example. He crawls to the stairs, pulls himself up to his knees and laughs because he is so proud of himself! He is the sweetest, cutest, most amazing child in the world! (Don't all mothers say this about their kids? Well, mine really is! j/k).

Trying again!

2009-03-04T14:35:00.000-08:00

OK, since only 2 people actually read this blog, I got irritated and busy, so I stopped writing it. But I feel like I have a lot to say and our family has been going through so much, that I am going to give it one more try. Hopefully this people will be interested in what the Stromski's are up to and want to read about Garrett's developmental fun!

Marathon

2009-01-20T07:45:00.000-08:00

So on Sunday 1/18/09, Eric ran the P.F. Chang's Marathon in 4hrs 19min. He is absolutely amazing, my husband! This was his first marathon, and he ran it by himself, all of his friends bailed out, sad. These runners have such determination and it was so emotional watching them cross the finish line. There were couple going across holding hands, which made me tear up! Could you imagine running 26.2 miles, crossing 3 cities?
My parents, Garrett and I went down to cheer him on and meet him at the finish line. It was really such a great day. We walked right past my old dorms, the ASU campus looked a bit different, they built new dorms and several new parking structures. The old sorority dorms has bars on the entry, weird. It was neat showing Eric and Garrett where I used to live and play :)
All and all it was a wonderful day that we will remember forever.

Mama, for real or babble?

2009-01-10T14:55:00.000-08:00

So yesterday Garrett said "mama". Now he has been saying "nanana" for a couple months now and babbles non stop. But yesterday he was saying "nanana" and I said, "mama." Then he said "mama" right after. Later that day he said it a few more times. Then today he said "mama" again 3 times. So, is it the real thing, his "official" first word, or is this just babble?
*Let's take a poll: Let me know what you think. Can I count this as his first word and right it in the baby book???

Free Calendar from Shutterfly

2009-01-09T15:10:00.000-08:00

If you don't already have a calendar, or want to send one to a family member of the kiddos, this is a great opportunity.
Grab a FREE* Photo Calendar from Shutterfly by entering code CALENDAR12 at checkout. The offer expires January 12, 2009.
* Must pay shipping.

eCoupons

2009-01-09T08:08:00.000-08:00

So anyone who has talked to me for an extended period of time knows that I have become a coupon clipping, money saving fool! Well, I just found something that will save me time; eCoupons. You can load your grocery store cards with coupons, so when you swipe it at the register for the stores savings, you also get your coupons without having to hand them to the cashier one by one. It is great! I generally shop at Fry's and Safeway, but you can use them at pretty much any store across the country.
Here are a few links, check it out and have fun!
http://shortcuts.com/
https://lty.s.upromise.com/member/ecoupon/eCouponHome.do
http://www.pgeverydaysolutions.com/pgeds/en_US/jsp/EDS_Page.jsp?pageID=HP

Memories

2009-01-07T19:02:00.000-08:00

Here are a few fun memories from 2008; these are a little out of order. We are a bit slow at getting out our pictures :)

Garrett is getting his very first haircut by his Grandma Zalot.
He sat so nice and just played with a toy.

Garrett after his haircut, so handsome.

My friend Candida with her beautiful new baby boy, Quincy.
I went to visit them in the hospital.

Garrett with Santa for the first time. It was his nap time so I'm not sure if he was just tired, or if he doesn't like Santa, either way that's pretty sad.

This is Garrett on his very first Christmas!
He was so happy to have some new toys.

We took Garrett to a friend's birthday party at the Railroad park. We got to take him a a little steam engine train ride and this carousel ride. He loved both, smiling and laughing the whole time.

We are at the Christmas Tree lot picking out our tree; Garrett's first tree.

Happy New Year!

2009-01-01T11:05:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year- 2009 from our family to yours! We hope you all have a wonderful year and really try to fulfill your dreams. May God bless you in ways you never could have imagined! :)

Bittersweet

2008-12-31T12:14:00.000-08:00

The new year is approaching and it is a little bittersweet for me. 2008 was such a wonderful year for us Stromski's! Eric got promoted to Tech Sargent and Garrett Elijah was born. Eric's promotion certainly helped change his career path for the better and allowed me to be able to stay at home with Garrett . And Garrett is just the highlight of my life. The one perfect thing I have ever done! He is getting so big now, especially with all his teeth and all the crawling around he does he is such a "big boy." It makes me a little sad that he is growing so fast. Last weekend I cleaned out his closet and packed up all of his clothes that he has outgrown. I found the outfit we brought him home from the hospital in and of course that brought me to tears. I have to say a part of me is really happy that he is such a mamma's boy. I know that he needs to be more independent, and we are definitely working on that, but I love that he crawls around after me and reached out for me when I walk by.

On another note, great news... I have only a few more physical therapy sessions and then I am free! Yea, back to my life. After 4 months of this I can't wait to start back up with my mom's groups or just sit and drink a whole cup of coffee an dnot have to get reasy and run out. Garrett is in some desperate need of some socialization too.

The new year will bring us some fun and exciting adventures. With God's help I can be up to the task! I am tired just thinking about it :)

New Years

2008-12-29T15:51:00.000-08:00

So, we have this fabulous New Year's Eve party we have been invited to attend; it is casino themed so I can play craps, YEA! I was so excited when I heard about it, then I got the invitation... it is black tie. The invitation actually says "wear your favorite ballgown." I don't have a ballgown, besides my wedding dress. I don't have the money to go out and by a dress, what do I do? I have a few dresses left over from my college days, but I just had a baby and my body is now crazy weird, definitely not like it used to be, so how are those dresses going to fit me? This stuff super stresses me out. I love being all girly and dressing up, but not when it's required. I just feel like I am not going to fit in or look quite right.
My mom helped me decide between the few dresses that fit me (well, that I can squeeze into), I bought a pair of shoes and a pair of panty hose, but I still feel like I am not dressy enough, ridiculous and uncomfortable. Plus, what do I do w/ my hair...uggg!
-Any ideas? Help? Words of encouragement? Does anyone even read this? :)

By the way, Garrett got another tooth the other day. So now he has 4 on top and 2 on the bottom. This kid cracks me up with all his big goofy teeth on his tiny little body. He now looks like a big boy instead of a baby. It is a little sad.

Our Christmas

2008-12-29T15:46:00.000-08:00

We had a fabulous Christmas holiday. It was actually a relaxing, we didn't have much to do. On Christmas Eve, we went to an early service at our church then home for some more baking. I had been baking everyday for about a week and a half! Eric watched his Notre Dame win, which made him super happy! Then Christmas day we opened some presents, Garrett obviously could have cared less, but had lots of fun playing with all his new toys :) . Then we went to my parents house for a late lunch. That was it, actually a bit boring. I really wish Eric ad some relatives that lived here so we would have more to do on the holidays.

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-24T13:06:00.001-08:00

We hope all of you have a wonderful Christmas and really remember what the meaning of this day truly is.

Another Tooth?!?!

2008-12-18T08:22:00.000-08:00

This morning Garrett and I were playing on the floor with some toys as usual, when Garrett flashed me one of those heartwarming million dollar smiles. What? Wait a minute... I opened his mouth up wide investigated in there, put my finger in a felt all around, I was not seeing things. He has another TOOTH! This kid is only 7 months old and now has 5 teeth, I repeat, FIVE teeth! His newest is on the top right, so now he has 3 on top and 2 on bottom. He is going to have a full mouth of teeth before he reaches his first birthday.
No wonder he has been so miserable for the last 3 months. I was thinking I was just a bad mom, or he was just one of those "fussy" babies you hear about, oh no, my son was in serious pain. Luckily, those days are over his teeth are popping up like wildflowers. YEA, no more screaming and those super sad tears streaming down his beautiful face; we can finally breath.
Oh wait, I am sure another milestone is on the way for some more screaming. :)

Haircut

2008-12-16T08:51:00.000-08:00

On Sunday, 12/14, Garrett got his first haircut! We had an impromptu visit to my parent's house and we decided to have my mom cut his hair. He had all this super long wispy hairs on the top of his head and around his ears, it was driving me crazy! His hair is much softer now and he looks so handsome.
I was surprised by how good he was during the cut. We sat him up on the counter and gave him a toy and it was no problem at all, he didn't even notice :)

- We took pictures, so as soon as I figure out how to post them I will :)

Welcome to our family blog!

2008-12-15T08:50:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone! I created this since most of oyu live far away and don't get to se us often. This is a great way to keep you all informed on the latest and greatest. Garrett is growing so fast, he is already 7 months and we don't want you to miss out anymore!

Well Christmas time is upon us and in sunny Arizona it doesn't really feel like Christmas yet. It just finally started getting cold durning the day yesterday. We bought our Christmas tree on Friday night, and decorated it last night (Sunday). I decorated the house and Eric put up the lights last week, so it is now feeling a little more Christmasy!

Yesterday we went to the Railroad Park for a friend's daughter's 1st birthday. It was really cold out, but we had so much fun. We got to take Garrett on a little steam engine train ride and a carousel ride. Garrett had so much fun he was laughing and looking around at everything. He loves the outdoors and he is so curious about everything!

Ok... more posts to come!