Cars 2

So we decided to take Nicholas to the movie theatre for the first time to see Cars 2.  Beth, Brad and the girls gave him the first Cars movie for his birthday and a free movie ticket came with the movie, so we said "why not?"  Well, we can say that the first 20 minutes of the movie are pretty good...  We came armed with juice and raisins, but that did not keep Nicholas from wanting to "get down?"  He was ok through the previews, but after each one was done, he would say "get down?"  I figured once the movie came on that he would be ok because it would be continuous action.  I was WRONG!  Maybe if the movie was another Toy Story (which is his love right now) he might have made it through, but we have quickly decided that it will be awhile before we try the movie going experience again.  Maybe the drive-in would work better.  Live and learn, but at least with our free ticket we only paid $1.50 out of pocket (Nicholas was free and we think the guy working the counter just discounted the max of the free ticket towards both of ours - hey we'll take it). 

July 4th Weekend and Status Update

We visited Gigi and Pawpaw in Mobile for the July 4th weekend.  We headed down Saturday morning and the trip overall wasn't bad (except a stint of about 45 minutes when we were either stopped or just creeping along I-65).  It was really smooth sailing once we passed all the beach exits.  Nicholas did really well thanks to several movies keeping him preoccupied. 

Over the weekend, we ate like kings in Mobile with steaks on Saturday, a shrimp boil on Sunday (thanks to Brian and Cindy for that one) and then pork tenderloin on Monday.  Gabe and I were even able to get away for about half a day and let Gigi and Pawpaw dote on Nicholas a bit.  We headed over to Biloxi Sunday afternoon.  This time I remembered my license and yet did not get carded even once.  Oh well.  We first visited the Beau Rivage, which was extremely busy and wasn't that kind to us monetarily, so we took Cindy's recommendation of the Palace Casino.  This one was much nicer to us (we actually came home with a little more money than we brought - thanks in part to Gabe's work at a blackjack table and me mistakenly hitting the max bet button on a slot, which worked out in my favor) and with a smoke free environment it was much cleaner as well.  We had a good time just getting away for a bit.

For the 4th, mom and dad mentioned going over to Brian and Cindy's house (my aunt and uncle) to watch fireworks.  They apparently have a neighbor that puts on an amazing fireworks show.  We said sure why not, since we weren't about to trek downtown to watch the city version.  Needless to say the show we saw was probably 10 times better than what Mobile put on.  No joke...  The fireworks started around 8:45 and last a FULL HOUR!!  They looked professionally done and were as big as city shows.  The nicest part about it was we watched the whole thing from their screened-in porch.  Can't beat that.  I was surprised by Nicholas' reaction to the fireworks (or lack thereof I should say).  He watched a little bit, but wasn't all that interested.  Luckily he wasn't bothered by the noise at all.  Nicholas did really well sleeping in the pack n' play even though he just about had to sleep diagonally just to fit in it, which brings me to the latest stats update for him.

I took Nicholas to the doctor this morning for a belated 2 year well visit.  According to the pediatrician, he is 36 1/2 inches long (90%) and 28 lbs (50%).  The doctor said he is doing really well.  Nicholas did have one shot he had to get today, but recovered quickly.  His next check-up will be at 3 years old.  I can't thank God enough for how healthy Nicholas has been since he was born.  Hopefully that trend will continue...   

I was bad about taking pictures this past weekend, but here is one Gabe got of Nicholas "swimming" in Gigi and Pawpaw's backyard.  He loved playing in water and with their tennis balls most of the weekend.  I hope everyone had a safe holiday weekend! 

    

June Update

Two weeks ago, Nicholas started a Mother's Day Out program.  He goes two days a week for four hours.  The first week was great, but last Tuesday I went to pick him up and found him boo hooing.  I got there 5 minutes before it was over and I guess Nicholas was one of the last left and wondering where mom was.  Sort of odd since I was five minutes early, but I told him from now on I will be there early to get him so he doesn't have to be the last one there.  Broke my heart!  And to be expected Nicholas came home Thursday with a runny nose.  Luckily it hasn't developed into anything else, but knew this would happen with Nicholas finally exposed to other toddlers.  Today I dropped him off and he was extremely hesitant (there were other kids crying, which I think triggered him).  He was clutching on to my leg.  That was rather hard to do leaving him.  Hopefully this won't be a regular occurrence. 

Just recently Nicholas has started to say his name.  In the past when we tried to get him to say Nicholas it would come out Nikus.  I received copies of his 2 year pics in the mail and was showing them to him and every picture he would say Nicholas.  It was slow and methodical, but he got out all three syllables correctly.  Yea!  Now on to his three syllable last name...

Ever since the tornadoes hit in April (and actually before that) Gabe wanted to visit T-town.  We finally went down a few weekends ago and it just blew us away at what we saw (or I should say didn't see).  The intersection of McFarland and 15th was completely cleared.  We couldn't even remember what stores or restaurants were there.  In fact there was a small lake right off 15th that I had no clue was there and Gabe said it was because buildings and trees always blocked the view of it - now you can see it clear as day.  As we kept driving, there were signs on most businesses in the area saying Yes they were open again or that they would be reopening again.  Very humbling to see.  We also checked out the quad and the new Nick Saban statue.  I wasn't very impressed with it, but they didn't ask my opinion.  Nicholas enjoyed running all around the quad and chasing after squirrels.      

I thought I would share my first attempt at a diaper cake. It boggles my mind how much these go for online - sometimes costing $70 or more.  I've done a few diaper wreaths before, but this was my first cake.  This past weekend, I helped co-host a baby shower for my friend Janna and it was a nautical theme. The shower turned out great!  We can't wait to meet Andrew in a few months!

Two Years Old

Since Nicholas hasn't been to the doctor since last September, I don't have any legit height or weight stats.  I do believe that Mimi was right in saying that Nicholas was going through a growth spurt about a month ago.  His naps went from the normal 2 hours to 3 1/2 - 4 hours.  Now Nicholas can easily get off the beds in our house without having to hop down or anything.  Just recently Gabe weighed Nicholas and we think he is right at 30 pounds.  He wears 24 month - 2T clothes and size 6-7 shoes.  I was a bit late in scheduling his 2 year well visit check-up so we actually won't know how he ranks until July.  I'm just happy that he has been healthy and we haven't had to visit the pediatrician.  Here is the latest on what Nicholas is up to:

Sleep: Nicholas goes down for naps and at night really well.  It will be interesting to see if and how that changes when he eventually moves to a big boy bed.  He never makes a peep and is usually fast asleep.  At this time he usually naps for 2-3 hours in the afternoon with his bedtime being between 8 and 8:30.  He normally sleeps until 7am or so. Nicholas is starting a mother's day out program soon, so he will have to get used to starting his nap a bit later than normal.  Recently Nicholas woke up from a nap and (with his crib right by the door to his room) started knocking on the door and said "Hello" - like "don't forget I'm in here mama!" 

Nutrition: Nicholas is big on eating things with his hands (even though he is fully capable of using a fork).  Therefore if there is a food that he doesn't like touching (pasta, most veggies, etc) he pretty much won't eat it.  His favorites are hot dogs, chicken nuggets, pb&j sandwiches, grapes, yogurt, raisins (or as he calls them raines) and any kind of bread or cracker.  Nicholas loves dipping food in whatever kind of dip we give him - either ketchup, ranch, honey mustard, etc. 

Play:  Nicholas loves playing "ouside", but unfortunately he has been eaten alive recently by mosquitoes or other bugs.  Some even make him extremely swollen where he was bit, so I haven't been too enthusiastic about letting him play outside.  When he does play outside, he loves playing with berries, sticks or whatever he can get his hands on, his bubble machine, or  in his pool.  Inside he loves chasing Bama with his lawn mower (which Bama is deathly afraid of). 

Cute quirks: He will rub his belly and say "mmmm yummy". He throws anything that he gets his hands on. Very cute when he has toy balls, but not so good when he is holding sippy cups, cell phones or remotes.  He still LOVES his blankie and will suck on his fingers while holding blankie (mainly when he is tired).  Nicholas is very friendly to others, especially when we are at the store, saying hello to those we pass.  However, if someone comes up to him and speaks, he is extremely shy.  I suppose it has to be on his terms.   

Talk:  Nicholas vocabulary has exploded.  He will basically repeat anything we say.  The most recent words and phrases are:

• What's that?
• I love (insert word here)!   It's usually blankie, Mickey, etc.  But recently told Mimi that he loves TV!
• I don't know - so cute because he turns his hands up while saying this
• No I fine or No thanks 
• I did it!  or We did it!
• More please - sounds more like "mo pease"
• Yea - he has finally stopped saying "Set" for Yes 
• Look! 
• Come on Dada or Mama!

We celebrated his 2nd birthday the exact same way as last year, except this year was a Mickey theme.  Here are a few pictures from yesterday...

Mimi's beautiful Mickey cake

Nicholas and Anna playing with some ping pong balls

Birthday lunch consisted of Chick-fil-A chicken, homemade potato salad and baked beans

Nicholas rubbing his ranch dip all over his arm

Opening the Moseleys gift since Meagan and Abby had to leave early for their recital

Nicholas wasn't quite sure why everyone was singing to him

but he did try the cake this year...

Nicholas received about four Mickey birthday cards that sang the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse theme song.  Every time he heard it, he would cover his face.  It was too funny!

Reading some books that we bought him

Riding his tricycle that NiNi and Hollie gave him and also listening to one of his cards again

Happy Birthday Nicholas!  We love you little man!

Gotta Love Free Stuff

Over the past year, Gabe and I have become much more coupon/deal crazy.  We both follow several blogs/websites that list daily coupon deals, drug store deals and freebie deals.  And it shows - we spent about $75 less each month on groceries last year than we did in 2008 (and that was also prior to Nicholas, so that's even with one more head to feed).  Usually several days out of the week our mailbox contains either free samples or great coupons for products. 
Well, Gabe and I recently hit the mother load of all freebies.  Over the past 4 years, the Birmingham office of MMP (my employer) has gone from 8 employees to one (yep I would be the last one).  Therefore they have finally decided to shut down our office, which I didn't really use all that much since Nicholas was born (yes I'm one of the lucky ones that gets to work from home).  It's sort of sad to see everything being boxed up and moved, but life goes on - and so does the furniture.  I was luckily able to score an executive desk, computer desk, computer chair, file cabinet and refrigerator (full size I might add) for FREE!!  I really was not planning on the refrigerator, but I guess corporate just wanted to get rid of it rather than haul it somewhere.  The beauty of this is we now have an ice maker!  Ah - it's so nice to have an ice maker again. 

Well, the free stuff has continued because I found out just several days ago that I won a $50 gift card (with free shipping) to Shutterfly!  How perfect is that since I've just had these wonderful pictures of Nicholas taken and now I can order as many as I want for free!  I actually won the card off another blog that I follow and love called Centsational Girl.  I've also become infatuated with decorating and DIY blogs that have cute ideas for cheap (I'm getting all my ideas for when we build our home).  Many of these have giveaways pretty frequently and for various items.  I'm obsessed!  Some people do facebook/twitter, some watch reality shows, I follow blogs.  For those interested here are some of the blogs I follow in my Google Reader:

Decorating:
Centsational Girl
Sawdust and Paper Scraps
Simple Organized Living
Frugal with a Flourish   
Thrifty Decor Chick

Money Saving/Coupons:
Krazy Coupon Lady
Money Saving Mom
My Frugal Adventures

Happy Mother's Day...

To Me!  I am so super excited about my mother's day gift that I just have to share it with everyone.  I knew with Nicholas' second birthday coming up at the end of the month that I wanted to get pictures taken.  However, I know how a two year old doesn't exactly sit still and pose, so I opted to have a professional photographer take his pictures.  My original intent was to do them at Grandmother and Granddaddy's house, but the tornadoes messed up my plan.  So instead, we hit up the big bustling downtown of Leeds.

Nicholas was not exactly in the mood to take pictures because mama woke him up from his nap and he had a death grip on some animal crackers and his juice cup.  We walked all around downtown and Erin did an AMAZING job!!  She was so good singing to him, chasing after him and taking some awesome pictures of a smiling toddler!  I can't thank her enough for these wonderful memories and highly recommend her - Lens Envy Photography.

And here are a few more of my favorites...

I hope all of our friends and family had a wonderful mother's day weekend.

Next 30 Years

Thanks so much to everyone for my birthday facebook wishes, emails and cards!  I had a really nice birthday.  Gabe and I decided to take the day off, and here is what my day consisted of...

The Birmingham Zoo
I have been meaning to take Nicholas here forever and we finally got him there.  We bought the family membership pass (really an early birthday gift for him) and headed down there this morning.  Nicholas enjoyed seeing the animals, but still seems to watch other people than anything else.  I must be sheltering this little boy too much...

My little monkey checking out some other monkeys

Sometimes I think Nicholas enjoyed the fake elephant more than the real ones.

He loved the giraffes, just like his cousin Meagan

For all the animals he said "HELLO"

Nicholas was just under the age cutoff to ride the camels, but I doubt he would be interested anyways.

Finally the real "elpant"

Our family package to the zoo includes a guest pass, so if anyone wants to join us either on a Wednesday or Friday (my days off) you would get in free.

Chickfila
Nicholas loves playing in the play area at Chickfila and today when we went there were two sweet girls (probably around 10 or so) and they just loved Nicholas to death.  They played with him and encouraged him to climb and slide down the slide.  It was all we could do to get him out of there to eat.  Whenever Gabe or I attempted to get him out, the girls would just say "He is the cutest thing!"  No argument from us...

Shops at Grand River
I am loving having the new outlet mall less than 5 minutes from our house.  While Nicholas napped I hit up a few stores and was able to get some desperately needed updates to my wardrobe (thanks to my b'day gift from Grandmother and Granddaddy - Thank You!)

STIX
Gabe asked me about going out to eat somewhere and it has been forever since we've been to a Japanese restaurant.  So we decided to go to Kobe off 280.  Well that place was completely boarded up (and didn't even say so on their website - thank you very much).  So we headed to Stix over by the Galleria.  Even though it took quite awhile to get served, I always enjoy how entertaining the chefs are.  Our chef tonight particularly wanted to pick on me, so we had a good time and good food - minus Nicholas (I think he would have had a meltdown when they light the grill on fire).  Afterwards my birthday dessert consisted of a stop by the Krispy Kreme for a chocolate covered crueller (is there really anything better than KK's?!?)    

All in all, I had a great 30th birthday and will leave everyone with my song of the day that is so appropriate...