More peas please?

Maybe not.

All his ducks are in a row

Carter has been on a roll lately. I know nobody will ever find these little things as interesting as his own mom, but I thought I would share.

*Carter started calling Andi "Moo moo," which is her nickname that Jefferson and I call her. It is so cute the way he says it.

*I was reading a book that many of you are probably familiar with from the dollar spot at Target, "Cookie Monster's guessing game about food," or something along those lines. I was asking Carter to point out food that was on that page, carrots, apple, pizza, etc. When we got to the cookie he points to the cookie, yelling "cookie!" and then leans over, licks the page and says, "mmmmmmmm."

*Carter was playing in my closet yesterday and I went in after he had left and he had taken off his shoes and lined them up on the shelf with mine. It just cracked me up to see his little shoes next to mine.

*We ordered a bunch of stuff from the Children's place and had left the box in the living room. It wasn't long before Carter was wearing Andi's church shoes for next winter and had her headband on. The poor boy! I just had to laugh. It was especially funny because all he wanted to do was walk around the kitchen floor where the shoes clicked. I think we need to go throw some stuff or play in the mud or something.

*Now, onto the story that goes along with the pictures... Carter was in the bath for an hour two nights ago. Yes- an hour! He cried every time I tried to get him to come out. He was busy lining his ducks up and then knocking them off the side of the bathtub. He probably did this about twenty times. As you can see, he is quite proud that he has his ducks all in a row... it's more than his mom can say!

Wonder of wonders...

A MIRACLE!!! Carter stayed in nursery the whole time without crying!! I am sure this does not mean that it will be a cake walk from here on out, but he had a good experience to build on, and we know it can be done. I took the advice of my dear friend Robyn, who was a preschool teacher for a few years. I took Carter in after opening exercise in primary, that way nursery wasn't quite so long. I told him I would sit with him for five minutes, but then that "mommy had to go to class, but would be back in a little over an hour to get him." I know he doesn't understand time, or everything that I'm saying, but I think he got the gist of it. I stayed for five minutes in there with him, said goodbye and that I would be back in a little bit for him. I checked on him after a half hour (just through the window) and he was on the floor playing. My heart was singing! I just wanted to run in there and give the boy a hug, which I didn't, because I knew that would be counterproductive. I had to pry him out of the playhouse when I went to pick him up after church. It's a sabbath day miracle!

Heavenly treat

We started holding FHE with Carter. We thought it was appropriate to go out for the Celestial dessert to commemorate our first real family FHE... soft serve vanilla ice cream!

Go green

So I am not a tree hugger by any means, but one thing we are going to try to do this year is go green, both to reduce our carbon footprint and save a little green. A few things we are doing that are so simple are:

-Jefferson is riding the bus (it only tags on about ten minutes of travel time)

-I have a "no drive day" once a week

-We are going to be more diligent about recycling

-Bundle errands so we hit all our stops on one trip out and about

-Turning our thermostat down a few degrees

-And a few other little things like buying in season produce, do all the laundry back to back (less energy to heat up the dryer every time), etc...

Cafe Rio

I have had some requests to put this recipe on my blog. It is so delicious and tastes exactly like the real deal (well, it has been a year since I've had the real stuff, but so far as I can remember).

Cafe Rio Pork:
pork roast
1 bottle honey bbq sauce
1 tbsp. honey
1 liter of coke

*Place ingredients in crock pot and cook on low all night. In the morning shred the roast and leave in crock pot with juice on low. (i just did mine for 4-5 hours during the day and it turned out great)

Lime rice:
saute in pan:
2 tbsp butter
1 yellow onion chopped
4 cloves garlic
in large pot bring to boil:
6 2/3 cup water
8 tsp. chicken bullion
1/2 bunch chopped cilantro
2 tsp cumin
2 small cans diced green chilis
1 tbsp. lime juice
1/2 tsp. salt

*add onion and garlic to boiling water. Add 3 cups long grain rice, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 30 minutes

Pico de Gallo:
4 fresh tomatoes, chopped
1 white onion, chopped
1/4 bunch chopped cilantro
2 cloves minced garlic
1/2 tsp lime juice
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper

*combine all and serve chilled

Tomatillo dressing:
1 pkg hidden valley buttermilk ranch dressing dry mix
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup mayonnaise
1-2 tomatillos, peeled
1 clove garlic minced
1/2 bunch chopped cilantro
1/2 tsp lime juice
1 small jalapeno pepper, seeds removed

*blend all together until smooth, keep chilled

Serve on Costco's uncooked tortillas (cooked, of course! those are the best, but really any tortilla works) with Cotija cheese (that cheese is key, however, if you can't find it, feta is a good alternative)

There's nothing he can't do

This boy is amazing and continues to learn new tricks every day. Nothing is safe or baby proof anymore in our house. He can open any door, regardless of what kind of handle (ok, the safety ones still manage to be a little tricky for him), he can undo locks, including the deadbolt, he climbs onto everything, he can turn on all the faucets and the shower, he opens the fridge, the dishwasher, cabinets, drawers, he knows how to turn on our piano keyboard, how to work the microwave and the vcr (luckily our vcr has a safety feature where you have to have the remote to work the thing). He is starting to use small sentences. He is learning colors and we're trying to get the ABC's going. He still loves playing with stuffed animals and will wrap them up in blankets and put them in Andi's bassinet. His favorite toy is his tee pee and his giraffe/horse, Lasso.

Christmas keeps on giving:

Can you believe this teepee my mom made for Carter?! It's amazing! Carter practically lives in it... it's big enough!

My indulgence...

= happy

10 for $10

Here are four of the five cards we will be making. (i couldn't get the fifth picture to download)

Jury summons

Ok, three posts in one day may be a bit extreme, but I do need some advice on this one. I just got a jury summons. Now, the probability that I will actually make it to a case in court are pretty slim, I would presume. I'm not really sure how it all works. But my curiosity is peaked. What if I got to sit in on some murder case?! Wouldn't that be so exciting?! The chances of that are decently high here in Multnomah county. I can, however, opt to be excused because I am nursing a child. It is mandatory that the court excuse me if I check that box. Or, I can not check the box and see what happens. I guess that being on a court would be a lot of days away from home and a lot of babysitting hours that would need to be fulfilled. That would be a lot of work, plus I would either have to pump a lot, or wean Andi. Ok, after writing all this and thinking through it, it is not practical at all to be on a jury right now. So, I guess my decision is made. But I would still love to hear what you think. Come on... wouldn't it be fun to see all the evidence and pictures and criminals in a murder case?! Unless of course they are convicted and then send their gang after the jurors. I'm not serving... case closed.

The weigh in..

Coming in at 23lbs 11oz (11%) and 34 1/2 inches long (80%) is Mr. Carter:

And just behind him is Miss Andi coming in at 16lbs 4 oz (50%) and 28 1/2 inches long (>97%):

Cousin Cal

We have a new nephew. He was born December 21. Calvin Jay Stewart. He is so adorable with tons of dark hair! Andi is a little jealous. We finally have some pictures from our visit last week...

Thanks

Thanks for the feedback all. Great suggestions. We have tried a lot of them. We talk up nursery all the time at home, sing the songs, talk about upcoming lessons and the friends and toys. All to no avail. We usually do a short goodbye, push him in the door, and that's when the crying begins. My friend Robyn taught preschool for the last few years, so she had some suggestions that we are going to try. We'll let you know how it goes. Thanks again for the suggestions!

HELP!

Anyone who has or has ever had a child in nursery... how do you do it?! I thought for sure that Carter would just love nursery. He's a social child, plays well with others, goes to my friends' homes without me just fine, stays well with babysitters. I just knew that the transition to nursery was going to be a breeze. Boy was I wrong!! Carter will scream for the full two hours. He won't eat the snack. He's to the point that he won't even play when we are in there with him. Any suggestions on how to get our child to stay in nursery and like it? I have heard to just give a short goodbye and leave. I have heard to leave for a bit, come back for a bit, and then leave for a bit again. I have heard to stay in there with them and leave a little earlier every time. Any help is greatly appreciated. The crying has got to stop. :)

And we're back...

Well, after our three and a half week hiatus across the northwest we are back and up and running. We hope everyone had a great Christmas and a great start to the new year. We have really enjoyed our holidays (see pictures below). It began in Klamath Falls. My Grandma and Grandpa Jensen were there and got to spend time getting to know their great grandchildren. My sister Alli and I played and shopped a bunch. We went to a couple of my mom's concerts. Carter enjoyed riding the four wheeler, feeding the horses, and trying to sneak out the front door. Within five minutes of being at my parents' house he figured out how to unlock the deadbolt on their front door and was standing on the front porch playing with their dog. We also enjoyed six inches of fresh snow the night before we left.
After Klamath we ventured over to Boise and stayed with Jefferson's brother Josh and his wife Jenn. Jefferson's sisters, Alli and Abbey, and his dad were there too. Josh and Jenn have four horses, two dogs, and a cat. Needless to say, Carter was in heaven. Jenn couldn't get her fill of Andi and Jefferson and I enjoyed a little bit of down time while everyone tended to our children.
Next came Twin Falls. We stayed with Jefferson's Aunt Di and Uncle Dave. They have five kids, Trevor, Tyler, Tyson, Tiffany, and Taylor, who tended to our two kids night and day. Between taking them out to the horses, sneaking them marshmallows, and letting them play the piano, we didn't have to do much.
It's back to reality now. We have enjoyed this past week with just our little family, settling in. Carter has been playing with all his new toys and Andi is just learning to sit and getting the whole eating solids thing down.
Hope all of your holidays were equally relaxing and fun. Happy New Year!

Christmas

Christmas Sunday

Family

Cousins playing

Carter's first sledding trip

(I think pictures in that blue snowsuit may be great for blackmailing some day)

Hanging out at Josh and Jenn's

Christmas morning

Great Grandma Berna's

Andi and some of her aunts

Aunt Jenn with Andi

Aunt Ali and Aunt Abbey

Rice Cereal

Andi's first go at rice cereal. I am not so sure her chubby little legs need it, but she likes it. Also, ignore the outfit. There was a dress over all that, but we took it off so as not to get so messy.

Four Generations

Great Grandma Jensen, Grandma Stewart, Mama Harmon, Baby Andi