Today the little dude goes in for his 2-month check up, which means shots.  I’m sure he’ll do just fine, he’s already showing to be a pretty tough bugger with all the tough loves he gets from big brother (Nolan’s hugs occassionally result in more of a head-butt).  We’ll also be confirming with the doc that Cooper is indeed lactose intolerant.  Since we’ve switched to the soy formula, the boy is no longer suffering from gas and is thus happier and sleeping better.  I’m thinking the soy is the key, but we’ll make sure the doc is on the same page as well – nothing wrong with a little reassurance, even when you know you’re right.  =)

 

Remember when I told you about my lovely friend who, on her wedding, looked like she belonged in the Vogue bridal issue?  Well, I take it back.  She belonged on the cover.  Seriously folks, if you’re like me and have an odd facination with looking at wedding photos, please go here….

ashkiphoto.com/blog

Scroll down until you come to the post about Shelly and Mike’s wedding in McCall.  I have no words.  Beyond gorgeous.  I knew the photos were going to be amazing as I watched the photos being taken, but this surpassed my expectations.  Here’s one photo, just as a teaser.  You must go and look at the others. 

Side note:  Shelly is going to be not so happy with me for broadcasting this.  Sorry friend, they’re just too perfect not to share.

I am officially in love with Cyndee, the photographer.  Her work is amazing – I love the style.  To top it off, she’s super sweet and funny.  If any of you are looking to have some professional photos done and are either in the Boise area or don’t mind driving to the Boise area, she is worth every penny. 

Yesterday was a sad day – we said goodbye to the cows.  The feed in the pasture was starting to get low, so it was time for them to head to the sale.  On the bright side, since they’re all good lookin’ heifers, they probably went to somewhere other than the “house” (it just looked too mean to write “slaughter house”).  I’m sure gonna miss those girls – they were so nice and gentle, they even let Nolan walk up to them in the middle of the pasture.  I don’t know how I’m going to entertain Nolan now either – they were his favorite.  Who’s he going to talk to now when he’s out in the back yard?

 

I swear I have more photos of the little Coop man, they just happen to be on the other camera which I haven’t had a chance to download yet.  Nolan thinks he needs to help whenever the laptop and/or camera are out – not a good thing.  More photos of Coop are coming soon.

Thank goodness it’s still nice outside.  I’m going to be in a world of hurt when I can’t just open the door and let the kid roam.  Keep in mind, he’s usually bare foot and in his pjs – somehow, I don’t think the snow’s going to allow this.

 

Busy.  Busy.  Busy.  That’s why there are no new posts, no new photos.  Bottom line, there’s just too much going on.  All good, just BUSY.

Last weekend one of my nearest and dearest friends was married.  Now, all brides are pretty, and I’ve seen some very beautiful ones at that, but this girl takes the cake.  She truly looked like she stepped out of the bridal issue of Vogue.  It was almost sureal to watch as the photographer took her photo because she was just too beautiful.  You can be sure that I’ll be posting some photos later (I’m having issues remembering to download the darn things off my camera).

The wedding was held at a resort just outside of McCall, Idaho.  The weekend was great – we had the place to ourselves and it was a treat getting to spend time with friends that we rarely get to see.  The wedding and reception were both outside.  The weather held up through the ceremony and the formalities of the reception (dinner, toasts, cake cutting), then decided to let loose.  It ended up being perfect though – as the rain hit, everyone headed into the unfinished lodge and we finished the night in a “barn dance” fashion.  Everyone pitched in and tore down the reception and re-set inside for a great time.  And let me tell ya, we were loving all the extra help in tearing down the tables and such as the rain hit because it made the next morning extremely easy.  I even made it through my toast without too much nervousness.  Yay for a great event.  Yay for great friends!

Here’s what’s floating around in my head right now….

• I have a weird urge to do a triathalon.  No idea why.  It just sounds like fun, and oddly do-able.
• I should maybe quit watching the Today show, as I think that’s what put the idea of a triathalon in my head.
• My name is Amy, and I’m a paint-aholic.  I fully admit it.  I re-painted the dining room over the weekend, and I’m very happy with the results – much more bright and welcoming.  I now have the urge to repaint every room in the house, and this is no exageration.
• Painting with a toddler running around is totally possible.  Nolan only ran his fingers through the wet paint on the walls a couple times and it didn’t even cause a mess.
• I have no idea what I’m going to do when winter hits and I can’t just open the back door and let Nolan run in and out at his will.  This is seriously a lifesaver – I just open the door and he spends the morning playing outside with the occassional trip inside to say hi or show me the dirt he collected.
• I also don’t know what I’m going to do when we ship the cows to the sale yard.  They’re a great distraction for Nolan – when ever he’s about ready to through a fit, I ask him questions about the cows and he goes to point at them and then tells me what they say. 
• I need to post some new photos of the boys.  Maybe when I have more than 5 spare minutes….  so basically, check back in 2 years.
• Managing the two boys under 2 has been easier than I expected it to be.  That being said, spare moments to do things like update the blog are near non-existent.
• I think we’re finally getting Cooper’s gas problems under control – thank goodness!  He’s pretty content during the day (no screaming as a result of gas).  The night is still a bit of a different story, but hopefully we’ll tackle that one soon as well.
• Nolan’s morning naps have now been lasting about 4 hours.  The afternoon nap seems to be dwindling.  I think I’m ok with that.  If he starts to get cranky in the afternoon, I still lay him down.  I’m pretty sure he doesn’t sleep at all, but he plays in there happy as a clam for a good hour or more.  Wish that sleep would rub off on little brother.
• Excited to see one of my nearest and dearest in another week and half for her wedding!  Should be lots of fun.  Right now, I’m not even caring about fitting into the bridesmaid dress.  That could change, but for now, who cares.
• Websites like the Pioneer Woman’s Tasty Kitchen are the devil.  If I had them, I would spend hours browsing around that recipe site. 
• I have a great little collection of cook books, yet I tend to go to the internet for recipes.  I’m in a cooking mood lately.

Maybe after unloading that, my brain will feel less jumbled.  Here’s to hoping….

Well, so far so good.  I’ve been going with Jillian for about 3 weeks now, and although I don’t see mirror breaking changes, there are some changes going on. 

According to what clothes I can fit into, I’m back to pre-Cooper size or at least close to that (there may be a bit of extra chub here and there, but by gosh, the zippers are zipping and the buttons are buttoning).  However, I still have a ways to go to get to pre-Nolan size.  And that my friends, is the goal. 

I will say this, there is one heck of a jump between level 1 and level 2 of the shred.  I was expecting a little bump up.  I got a huge leap forward.  So long as it’s doing something though, I won’t bitch too much.

This weekend was wonderful, fabulous, just peachy.  Not too hot, not too cold, and lots of fun.

Saturday, we had some friends come out for a little BBQ and then headed to the lake for some wakeboarding.  It poored all day Friday, so we weren’t sure the lake was going to happen on Saturday, but it ended up being perfect weather.  It was warm enough to jump in the water, but not so darn hot that it was miserable hanging out on the bank.  We all took shifts on the boat and hanging out on the bank with the kids and dogs.  It was perfect.  Nolan even went for a few rides while Cooper slept the entire time.

I even braved a bathing suite just to get a bit of wakeboarding in.  Being pregnant for basically the last 2 years has really taken its toll on my wakeboarding and riding adventures.  Last summer, I went wakeboarding once and that was it.  It’s been a big change from a few years ago when it was just Brandon and I and we’d run to the lake after work for a quick ride, and we’d do that about 3 days a week and then of course again on the weekends.

Here are a few photos from the festivities.  Don’t mind the boat, the poor Bayliner has seen better days, but at least it does what we need it to, which is pull our butts out of the water.

Poor Leanna, I felt for her.  Wakeboarding’s out of the question when you’re 9 months preggo, but she was a trooper.  And super cute for 9 months preggo!

And pretty soon Nolan will be out there on the water too!  For now though, going for a ride is fun enough.

And surprisingly, I’m not near as sore as I thought I’d be.  Wahoo!  Yay for a great weekend!

While we were grocery shopping the other day, I stocked up on sweet potatoes.  Something about them was calling to me.

Then came dinner time.  I was at a loss for ideas.  Then it hit me – I wanted sweet potato french fries.  And from there, it got ugly.

I made about one and a half potatoes worth – cut them up, put them on a baking sheet, drizzled a bit of EVOO (extra virgin olive oil), sprinkled some salt and pepper, and baked them at 400 degrees for 45 minutes.  Lordy, they were good.  So good, the next day I cut up two more and did the exact same thing.  I wish I could say that Brandon, Nolan, and I have all been snacking on them non-stop, but really, it’s mainly me.  Good thing those sweet potatoes are jam packed with some great nutrients.

So, if you can’t think of what to make for a snack or for dinner, run and get some sweet potatoes.  You won’t be sorry.

Ok, it’s officially time to say goodbye to all of this baby weight from the last 2 years.  No more excuses.

Yesterday, I started my relationship with Jillian again – well, her and her 30 Day Shred.  I have 30 days until I need to shove myself into a bridesmaid dress and stand in front of a large group of friends.  Coincidence?  Not so much.  I’m bound and determined to be more firm 30 days from now. 

I know my biggest challenge is going to be finding the 30 minutes to do the shred, but by gosh, it’s going to happen.  Feel free to keep on me to make sure I’m doing this.  In fact, it would be welcomed.

I know 30 minutes doesn’t sound like much to most, but in my world, it’s a ton.  If I’m not juggling one of the boys, I’m either catching up on work, cleaning up one mess or another, or possibly trying to shower (that one’s low man on the totem pole).  But, I’m going to make it happen, one way or another. 

I’ll keep you posted.  This is not so much for your benefit, but for mine – hopefully being accountable to the blog will help.

Last weekend we loaded up the boys and traveled down to Red Bluff, California for our friend’s wedding.  Considering we were making a 10 hour road trip with a 16 month old and a 11 day old, to a place where they were expecting 110+ temperatures, and me being 11 days out of surgery, things went pretty well.

We did most of the driving in the wee hours of the morning so as to try to avoid massive meltdowns from Nolan.  It worked.  Leaving at 3am and having the kid sleep most of the way is much better than leaving at a decent hour and dealing with tantrums – hands down.

The wedding was beautiful and there were great friends all around to visit.  I’m a sucker for weddings, I just love them.  The 115 degrees was a bit hard to deal with, but someone set up a sprinkler at the reception, so at least the kids kept cool.  The occassional adult did a little dance through the sprinkler too – I’m waiting on copies of photos of Brandon and Sonni showing Nolan just how it’s done.

Here are some photos from the event.  Can’t wait to get copies of the ones Susan (the mother of the groom) took – she had her camera on her at all times and got some great shots.

Nolan and his dancing pose.

Cooper, haning out on the blanket.

Mama and Nolan.  I couldn’t keep the boy off the dance floor.

Nolan making funny noises with Uncle Steven.  His uncles kept him quite busy and entertained this weekend.  I love those big boys.

The lovely couple.  Donald was a trooper, keeping the tux on for hours in the 115 degree weather.  It’s times like these where I’m glad I’m a girl, dresses are much more air-y.

Too cool for words.

The sun and play tuckered him out.  He fit in a little nap at the reception.