Some photos from the weekend

Here are a few photos from our weekend.

9/28/07 My new favorite toy. Thanks, Uncle Nick!














Swim lesson 9/28/07















Swim lesson 9/28/07 -Getting ready to swim to side of pool















Swim lesson 9/28/07













After swim lesson 9/28/07













I'm trying to have a private conversation, Mommy and Daddy! 9/30/07















No church for us today because Samuel has a runny nose.

Update on Samuel

---One of my favorite photos of Samuel. He got into that tiny beach wagon that Grammy bought him. He was so proud of himself. He had on his new tennis shoes (his 1st Nike's), which took up most of the tiny wagon since he has huge feet (Size 7). I just love his smile!

Our baby Samuel turned 17 months old yesterday. We are so happy to be his parents and are enjoying him so much! Samuel is growing and changing, and sometimes I wish I could stop him from growing up so quickly. Other times I look forward to the older Samuel because I can't wait to see what God has in store for his life.

If you don't have time to read more, stop now because this is a long one...

I want to tell you what our 17-month old is up to:

-Samuel is very much an outdoor boy. He loves the beach, the pool, his wagon, playing in the yard, and exploring. He is full of energy, which keeps me on my toes.

-He is getting into everything, which can be a problem sometimes... Jeremy and I can't seem to keep him away from the desk in the office. He is so interested in anything he can get off of that desk. Oh, and being tall for his age means that he can take things off of the countertops now. Yesterday he brought me a muffin I had on the counter in a ziploc, and he said, "Bite." So cute! Other times he is pulling down things that I don't want him to touch. I'm learning to move things to the middle of the counters.

-Samuel loves to play! He is always busy! He never stops, and sometimes it makes him unhappy to stop to eat because he's having so much fun. He is getting to the point where he can pretend and interact more with toys, which I love! He loves to pull his tiny beach wagon around the house or ride his "bike". We are using more puzzles with him, and that is fun!

-Samuel can't live without books. "Book" is his favorite word and one that we hear constantly. He always wants to be read to. This starts when he wakes up and doesn't end until he is asleep. He even "reads" in the car. Our little bookworm... We love it when he says "The End". He says that at the end of a book or when he's just had enough of a particular book he will close the book and say it.

-Samuel's new favorite toy is his Noah's Ark, which his Uncle Nick gave him. For Samuel's 1st birthday, he got so many toys, that I put some of them up in a closet. I took the Noah's Ark down this week, and he is having a blast playing with it. He wakes up in the morning and after his nap saying, "Ar(k)". Yesterday my mom was teaching him how to feed the animals and play with them. He enjoyed that and today was doing exactly what she told him without help from me. His only frustration is that he can't open the Ark without help. He'll get that eventually. I took a video of Samuel and the Ark today and will post it as well as pictures of him with it.

-He is talking more each day. I'm amazed by how he picks up words and repeats so many things we say. I love to hear him talk. I especially love it when he says, "Mama" when he wants me or when I leave the room. Recently (after my prompting), he started saying, "Bye Bye, Dada". So sweet! He loves the word, "No." I sure wish he would learn to say, "Yes." I wonder when that will happen. It cracks me up when I ask him a question knowing that the answer is yes, but he says, "No." Oh well.

-We taught him how to knock on the door, and now he knocks on the door when we get home whether I'm holding him or not. It's cute!

-He loves for us to give him rides on our backs or on our stomachs. He laughs and laughs. He says, "Ride" when he's in the mood for a ride.

-He loves bathtime. He recently started putting his face into the water when he's in the bathtub. I guess he's just experimenting. Funny... He has been washing himself some in the tub. Jeremy started this by asking Samuel to wash his feet. He was quick to do it, so now Jeremy has him wash most of his own body. Naturally, he doesn't quite understand how to do it, so we have to go behind him and wash some more once he finishes.

-Samuel doesn't like to cuddle, but he loves to give us hugs and kisses. He is all about being fair though. If he gives Jeremy a kiss, he immediately leans over and kisses me. What a sweet boy! He also hugs other people. My mom and dad love Samuel's hugs! One "disturbing" thing though- He will blow a kiss to a stranger. This is ok for now, but we will have to have a talk about strangers at some point... :)

-Samuel fell in the parking lot of my grandma's assisted living home, and I was teaching him the words "Boo Boo". Now he touches it and says, "Boo Boo."

-Samuel is getting some color to his skin. He is definitely going to have skin more like his Daddy. (Something I prayed for because I know the cons of having fair skin.)

-Samuel is doing much better with beverages now and even asks for "Milk" or "Juice". It's a good thing he doesn't realize that Mommy gives him 50% juice and 50% water. I had wanted to wait until 2 yrs. old before I gave him juice, but I started with it 2 1/2 weeks ago when Samuel needed some regularity if you know what I mean.

-Samuel is sleeping through the night (Praise the Lord!) and taking a 2-3 hour nap every afternoon.

-Samuel is such a blessing! Some of you might not know that Jeremy and I chose the name Samuel from the Bible because we prayed for Samuel for over a year before he was conceived. "I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him." -I Sam. 1:27

Ok, now for his 17 month birthday photos!


Ready to go for a walk















Our sweet son















Grand-Mom and Samuel on his 17 Month B-Day



















Enjoying the pumpkin that Grammy sent-
He loves to say, "Whoa" when it moves around.

Something new for me

Since I became a Mom 17 months ago, I haven't been to a Bible study. That changed today. My church offers a women's Bible study twice a month. Last year Samuel napped during that time, so I decided not to attend. This year Samuel is down to one nap and doesn't go down for that nap until about 12:00, so I am happy to be able to go. Today was a good experience for both of us.. I know he had a blast playing in the nursery, and I learned a lot through my pastor's wife's teachings as well as my small group time.

It's interesting how God works in our lives. Last night I had a bad night because I was worried about Jeremy. I had several nightmares and was concerned for his safety. Jeremy was in Fort Mill, SC all day yesterday and into the morning hours. He was supposed to be leaving around 10PM last night, but that didn't happen. I woke up in a panic around 2:30 AM. Jeremy wasn't home, and on top of that, I couldn't get him on his cell phone for like 10 minutes straight. I was a nervous wreck. I was crying and on the verge of calling the builder he works for when I finally got through to Jeremy. He had stopped at a gas station and had left his phone in the car. I can't tell you how worried I was before I heard his voice. I had pictured him dead on the side of the road. Today during the Bible study, something my pastor's wife said made me realize that I had forgotten God's promises last night. I chose to let my mind wander instead of giving it to God and resting on His promises. I know from the Bible that the Lord is with us and protecting us, so why did I not think of that when Jeremy wasn't home yet? I was wasting my time worrying when I should have been praying and thanking God for keeping Jeremy safe.

To close, that doesn't mean that we should put ourselves in dangerous situations just because God is protecting us. I told Jeremy that I want him to stay put if it's late. I don't care if he has to pay for a hotel room because I know it's the smart thing to do. Plus, that way he comes home rested. Today he has been miserable since he didn't get home until 4:15 AM and only slept a few hours. He tried to fall back to sleep once I left for Bible Study, but that didn't work. He ended up in bed at 7PM tonight. My sleeping beauty. I pray he gets a good night's sleep. He needs it!

On that note, I'm off to bed!

Banana bread (or muffins)

I love to make banana bread or muffins when my bananas get too ripe, so last night I made muffins. I wanted to share this Food Network recipe with you: Banana Bread. I've been using this recipe for awhile, and I like it! When I make muffins, I cook them for about 15-20 minutes. Just watch them when you get close to the 15 minute mark.

On more tip: I keep a few out in a ziploc bag after they cool and then store the rest in the refrigerator or freezer. That way they don't spoil. When we're ready to eat them, I heat them in the toaster oven. They taste so good out of the toaster oven! Yummy!

Do you have a good bread or muffin recipe to share? I would love it!

Happy Baking!

Vacation Rentals By Owner

Have you ever used VRBO to find a vacation rental? I've used it twice. The first time I found a oceanfront rental only 30 minutes from our house as a surprise when Jeremy returned from a mission trip to Honduras in February. We were very pleased with the rental and the fact that they were offering a special of 3 nights for the price of 2 nights made it even better. We had a blast! Jeremy and I really needed to have that time "alone". I say "alone" because we took Samuel with us (as I will do with any nursing baby). He was napping twice a day back then, so that gave us plenty of time together.

A few days ago I decided to look for a rental in Chattanooga. I'm going to be in a wedding, and the thought of staying in a hotel room with Samuel stresses me out. Samuel is at the age where he is VERY aware of his surroundings, and he doesn't do well with Mommy and Daddy sleeping a few feet away from him. He thinks it's time to play. Well, I'm not worried about it anymore because I found a super rental on VRBO for the price of a hotel room. It's described as "Trendy Downtown Bungalow". It's a 2-bedroom house very close to downtown Chattanooga. I was born in Chattanooga, lived there until I was 2 yrs. old, and can't remember the last time I was there. I imagine that it's been 25 yrs.. My mom is supposed to give me directions to the places we lived, so I should be able to see them again. We're also going to spend an extra night in order to be able to take Samuel to the Tennessee Aquarium and a children's museum that's near the aquarium. We're looking forward to our trip!

So, consider VRBO the next time you are planning a vacation. There are rentals worldwide, and I have been pleased to find nice accommodations for a good price. You can rent anything from a tiny studio to a mansion.

One last thing- If you're looking for a place on the beach, a friend of ours has something you might consider. It's on Fripp Island, SC, and it sleeps 2-4 people. Check it out.
It's great for a family with children old enough to go to sleep with Mom and Dad in the room. :) (Not where we are right now.) It's great too for a married couple wanting a little getaway.

Happy Vacationing!

If you like Jim 'N Nick's cheese biscuits

I ate at Jim 'N Nick's several times while I was teaching Spanish, and I absolutely loved their cheese biscuits. You can order 1/2 dozen of them, and I could eat all of them if I let myself. Today I was reading Monica's blog and was so excited to find that she had posted a copycat recipe of those famous cheese biscuits. They are more like muffins than they are biscuits; you cook them in a muffin tin. I made them tonight to go along with Amy's Kitchen vegetable lasagna (from my overflowing freezer). The biscuits were great! I couldn't believe how much they tasted like the Jim 'N Nick's biscuits. Next time I will use less sugar. Tonight I didn't use all of the sugar it called for, but I still think they were a little too sweet. I'm going to cut it to 1/2 cup of sugar and see if that's enough. I shredded my cheese instead of using prepackaged shredded, which I loved, but I would love even more than 1 cup of that cheese next time. It's fun trying out a recipe and changing it to meet your taste! I almost forgot to tell you that the muffins were done after 13 minutes even though the recipe said 20 minutes. Thankfully I was watching them. If I were you, I would stay close to the oven. Overcooked muffins aren't any good...

This week I plan to make oatmeal bread, and I will share the recipe if I like it.

Happy Cooking!

Campaign Against Financial Myths: 82 Myths Busted!

I subscribe to a blog that sent out a link to this very informative list of 82 financial myths busted.
It was very interesting. Not all of it was new information to me, but it's never a bad thing to review things you already know. If you're like me, you want to learn more about making smart financial decisions. Learn away!!!