fall/winter 2014

four months to cover so here goes!

mv at her 9 month checkup.  she weighed 19 lbs, 8 oz.  70% i think.  she was 75% in height and 85% in her head.  ha.  she goes back soon for her one-year so i will update then and do a recap of her birthday party!

my sweet grey lady, banjo

she turned 13 in november.  aside from arthritis or a sore muscle in her leg, she is doing great!

a rare family photo.  on the way to the harison wedding.

we finally finished the foyer!  i found a pew and got the pillows from carolina pottery.  i had a hard time finding cushions to fit but finally did on hayneedle.  the coat rack (it's really not crooked although it looks it!) is from a cedar tree from my parent's land - like our mantles.  that sucker was a beast to mount on the studs but we managed to hit four of 8.  haha!

we were able to get to one football game this year.  we didn't renew our season tickets because of the schedule and having mv.  maybe next year!  it was a great game against tennessee and we had great tickets thanks to uncle adi.

mv is crying at my pitiful excuse for her halloween costume.  we didn't do anything for halloween because we were going out of town so i wasn't spending a lot of money for daycare.  i ordered her a little lady bug hat and carapace (shell) but it didn't arrive in time.  oops, mom-fail....

the boys from allen and gail's wedding

the girls

and the group!  not sure what allen said but we all thought it was funny apparently.  :) 

hunt at the peters.radeck wedding.  more photos later on....

lunch with martha!

we hosted the shingler.filipovic group and friends for megan's birthday.  i made my sweet potato ravioli and sela and damir grilled some yummy meats.  the birthday girl with molly.

megan brought mv mickey and minnie from disney world.  she loves them and sleeps with minnie every night!

we went to uncle stan and aunt kelly's lake house for mema's birthday.  another rare family photo!

with mema, uncles stan, scott and jeff

mv at 9 months

mv at 10 months

happy girl

mv at 11 months

i promise to do a post of all the bear pics soon.  i made a banner for her birthday and it took me forever but now the work is done!

my bathing beauty.  look at those lashes!

ok, i never take mv into a bathroom.  but, we were at a car dealership and she needed changing.  so, in we went.  i decided to go to the bathroom too and, lo and behold, they had a chair for her.  how stinking convenient?!  the bathroom stall had its own sink too.  man, i am out of touch.  i don't plan on doing this often but it was so nice that day.  b's truck is too small for all of us so we are in the market for a new one.  we use his truck a lot when hauling dogs to the vansant boarding facility.  :)

this child loves kiwi.  here she is sporting a kiwi seed beauty mark.  :)

she is such a good eater!  she will pick peas out of a casserole and ignore the rest.  or beg for more limas when there is ham on her tray.  not sure where she gets that.  haha!

at blind pig for her inaugural trip to athens.

so ticklish!

in her monkey blanket from bb and pap.  complete with tail.  

she has turned into a butt-in-the-air sleeper.

face plant!

and sleeping propped up...

and head first into the pack n play

bundled up to go shopping.  first time she wore a bow.  the sweater onesie made her look like a boy.

napping with pap

first publix experience.  i usually left her at daycare until i was done at the store but was running late this day.  she has been several times since and behaves very well!

her first school pictures

snuggles

loving on sully

her thanksgiving outfit.  so stinking cute and reasonable.  i wasn't spending much on an outfit for a weekend.

group shot from the the peters.radeck wedding.  i won't disclose what is happening here.  :)

beautiful bride and entrance

under the oaks at hopeland gardens

with megan and adi

ceremony

at the sanford sign before the ut game

poor sick girl.  i think this was a double ear infection.  i hate when she is sick but love the snuggles.  

car seat nap with her hand up

steelers-falcons game.  go steelers.  b is a fan of both so he was torn the whole time.  nfl is so different from college!  it's a show for sure...

defense

house(s) divided

the best thanksgiving family photo we got

mv with uncle adi and aunt megan

with daddy at thanksgiving feast at daycare

pretty girl

trying to walk.  she is oh-so-close right now!

thanksgiving outtake

and another.  haha

at the shinglers for dinner

we had brunch in thomson that morning

with papa

and the videos....

our little birdie, eating her cereal...

working those legs

i love this video.  she is having so much fun in her bouncer!

mom shortcuts

Well, hello!  I'm back!  One thing I can say about being jobless is that I have had time to catch up on photos and the blog.  But first, in honor of the blog title, here is a list of a few things that have made my life easier in the last year.  

Mom list:

1 ~ Kiinde feeding system

for working moms, this system is amazing for pumping and bottle-feeding!  you pump right into the bag; then freeze, warm and feed (the bag goes into the plastic receptacle above) from the same bag as well.  and the bag can be recycled so NO bottles (just nipples) to clean.  i only had a few leak.  it is more expensive than bottles but saved me so much time!  and i started pumping multiple times a day in the bags  (instead of new ones each time) so that helped save some money.  i marked the amount of milk in each bag before i froze them so i would know when i pulled them out for daycare. 

2 ~ blue pads

when we were leaving the hospital, we took some of these pads with us for diaper changes.  mv would pee as soon as the diaper came off.  when we ran out, i found more on amazon.  they are about $20 for 150.  it saved us a ton of laundry!  and they are great for those really dirty diaper changes too that seem to take up the whole changing pad.  now that she has stopped doing it as often, we use the boppee changing pad liners and just wash as needed.

3 ~ steam bags

i love these things!  although we didn't have bottles, i used it for the nipples and pump parts.  i would soak them in soapy water when i got home and then throw them in this bag for a minute or two in the microwave.  open it up and they would dry as the steam evaporated.  easy peasy.

Cooking list:

1 ~ shredded chicken

i have blogged about this before but this is my favorite cooking trick ever.  just bake chicken for one hour at 350.  i buy the biggest package i can find, clean off the fat, sprinkle with S&P, drizzle with olive oil and cover with foil.  once the chicken is done (and still hot!), throw it in your kitchenaid and turn on the lowest level until shredded to your desired consistency.  i freeze in 2 cup portions in ziplocs and label.  when i need chicken for a dish, i throw it in the microwave on defrost for a minute or two.  because it is shredded, it doesn't get all weird in the microwave like whole pieces of meat would.  i add to pasta, rice, casseroles, mexican, etc.  i save so much money and time with this tip!

2 ~ french bread

i love fresh bread but we rarely eat it before it molds.  so, i have started cutting it into family-size portions, wrapping them in foil and freezing in labeled, giant ziplocs until needed.  they will defrost in an hour or two on the counter.  or, if you're like me and don't even have that much time, you can place it next to (not on!) the gas flame on your range (still in foil) and rotate until thawed.  i usually do this while cooking on that eye. 

3 ~ buitoni pasta

this refrigerated pasta is such a time-saver.  it is really good and lower in calories than you would think.  i buy the family-size portions and repackage in smaller sizes for the freezer.  i am sure costco has great options for this as well.  you can cook from frozen and then throw in ready-made sauce.  i love bertolli but hope to make and freeze my own soon.  buitoni has a ton of great varieties and can be found in the cheese section at publix.  once you cook and drain the pasta, put it back in the same pot and toss with parmesan so the sauce sticks.  once the cheese melts, add the sauce and cook until hot.  one-pot dinner!

We have finally invested in a spare fridge and freezer for our garage.  i am so excited to be able to have a stockpile of food in the freezer.  costco is going to be my new best friend.  i have always tried to buy in bulk but lack of freezer space was an issue.  one thing i do is buy whatever shredded cheese is on special at publix, buy one of each and freeze.  we use a ton of mexican, cheddar, parm and mozzarella.    again, i am sure costco has even better deals on this and i can repackage if necessary.  

i will try to live up to the title of this blog and work on further lists.  time-saver ideas are always appreciated, no?  :)