Enjoying Missouri

We are in Missouri for a few days and I am remembering how much I like this area.  Today we spent a couple of hours at the park...there was a nice breeze and it was warm, but not too warm and the humidity wasn't too bad.  We are all having such a great time hanging out with cousins (Gregory and Joshua) and me with my friend and sister-in-law and her husband.  I just wish my mother-in-law was feeling better so we could enjoy more time with her too.  Gregory keeps saying things like, "I just love being with my cousins" and then he was complimenting Aunt Beth on her yummy meatloaf she made for us for dinner.  It is so cute to see him enjoying being here.  And then it's also nice to have more hands to pass Joshua too as well.  It's nice to see Mark (cousin) loving on Joshua and Makayla just loves her uncle Tommy.  You can see it all over Gregory that he wants to be a big boy like his cousin Matthew.  So much fun.

Photos to come later!  More days to enjoy together too! 

Salsa and LOTS of onions

So on facebook I said that I have figured out how to cut a TON of onions without crying and burning your eyes...and then on TV I saw Alton Brown from Good Eats talking about what to do and he said that you can do what I do if you want to look goofy...and then went on to talk about other solutions...and his is to have a super sharp knife...that's just too dangerous for me, so I'll stick to looking goofy with my goggles!

 

And this was about 1/8 of the onions I sliced.

7 month comparison

Now that I got the 6 month stats up I can put the 7 month photos up...I wasn't going to do that until I finished the 6 month stuff up.

Not too much has changed with Joshua...he is still refusing to even try to crawl.  He still has his two bottom teeth...

Things that have changed...he definitely knows when mom has left the room and he doesn't like it one bit!  He's tried quite a few other foods...frozen honeydew and bananas, babyfood bananas, squash, carrots, peas, green beans, peaches, pears, and applesauce.  There isn't a one he doesn't like.  Oh and he especially likes banana flavored puffs!

So here are the comparison photos...Joshua first and Gregory is second.

 

6 month stats

Here's just a little comparison for those who are wondering...

Gregory at 6 months: weight 17 lbs 0 oz  - 50 percentile
                                length 27 inches - 50 percentile 
                                head 17 1/2 inches - 75 percentile

Joshua at 6 months:  weight 17 lbs 10 oz
                               length 26 1/4 inches
                               head size 17 1/2 inches  
(this was actually at 6 1/2 months)

It's interesting that they have the same size head -- big!  And Joshua seems chubby, but he really doesn't weigh that much more than Gregory did...I guess that 3/4 of an inch really matters :-)

6 month comparison

It's that time again...Joshua turned 6 months old last week and we finally got "good" pictures to use as his 6 month photo. So here it is...Gregory's 6 month photo is first (in Oct) and Joshua's is second. We have Joshua's 6 month check-up in mid-July. I am anxious to see how much he weighs (a lot I am sure) :-) He is doing really well with where he should be at activity-wise. He can sit up on his own for a little bit (sometimes longer than others--depends on how close Gregory is and how excited Joshua gets). He has two teeth on the bottom. We've started him on cereal, green beans and applesauce so far. He doesn't hate any of these as of now. He sleeps through the night on most nights. He has been in the nursery a few times and is doing better with this (I finally didn't get called back to come get him) :-) His composure is changing for the better...he seems to be more content most of the time (except when he needs or wants something)...which is different than his screaming for no reason.

Here are the comparison pics (Joshua first and then Gregory)...and the second photos are showing off Joshua's two teeth.

My Garden

I LOVE to garden, not really sure why other than it's awesome to see the growth and to enjoy the harvest. So when a storm comes it really bums me out if it ruins it. BUT, we prayed and God spared our garden from this last storm! PTL!

Here is the beginnings of the garden... (April)



And here is what it looks like now... (July)

Randomness

Yes, this is a VERY random post of some recent things that really don't fit any where else...

First of all be sure to check our photos out as there are a ton of new ones!!!!!! http://tomandroxannecook.shutterfly.com/

I have recently done a LOT of canning (Triple Berry Jam - 36 jars, Pepper Jelly - 12 jars, Pineapple Jelly - 3 jars). I hope to do some salsa soon too...when tomatoes are cheapest. Thanks to Craigslist I've been able to get some cheap jars.

There has been a fox that has been sited in our backyard for many months...we finally got pictures to prove it. Ever since this we haven't seen him around...I hope he finds a new home (closer to where he belongs--in the wild!).


I have also decided to make a pacifier holder for Joshua to keep it easily locatable as well as off of the ground / floor. I found some ideas online on how to make them and got one made yesterday. I am SURE to be making more in the near future...especially since my best friend recently told me of her pregnancy and then there are quite a few others I know too! Pretty exciting.



And lastly, food stuff...I've tried some new recipes too...yummy stuff! Last night we also has a FRESH salad from our garden! So happy that it is doing well especially after the hail storm we had the other night...only lost one small pear tomato. Looking forward to peas, carrots, zucchini, tomatoes, lettuce and herbs! More on the garden in another post...Oh and some of the new recipes I've tried were...
Beef Macaroni Casserole
Chicken Fiesta Taco Rice

And then there were good ole' standbys like Baked Beans - yum!