{ helmet. }

Helmet.

The dreaded word.  I thought we escaped it.  I thought we would get to do the whole PT thing.  We were wrong.

E rocked his PT appointment.

Pretty much had no problem doing any of the crazy exercises that the doc made him do.

Look to the right?  Well of course.

Look to the left...yep can do that one, too.  No problem.

So, while on the bright side E is very strong and having no motor skill delays, on the not-so-bright-side, that means his head will not correct itself with time.  If so, it would have already done it.  Or at least started.

So.  Bah.  Enter helmet.

We go tomorrow morning to see what this is all about.

I really was fine with the idea until Bryan and I put E to bed tonight.  As I leaned in, as I do each night to give him a kiss on the head, I realized that pretty soon I will be kissing a big ole hunk of plastic.  heart.  breaking.

People, he really does have the most kissable head.

I'm off to spend the rest of my night Pinteresting helmet decorating tips.  Although I may possibly be the first to try and Pinterest this.  We shall see.

Stay tuned...Adventures in helmet wearing starts in the wee hours.

{ change of pace... }

We've been sick around these parts lately. Head colds, sore throats, coughing up lungs...you name it. Change of the season does it to me every time. Usually Bryan is able to escape it, but not this time. And E has his own troubles...teething is back in full force as well as not having mom at dad at peak performance has made him a little on the fussy side.

So, we've been handing on and off the baby, sleeping on the couch, and buying stock in anti bacterial hand sanitizer. This also means Mister and I have been house bound for years. Okay fine, days, but it feels like years. Either way, we needed out.

So, I packed him up, all ready to hit the park to get some much needed fresh air therapy...all to realize the stroller is in the car. And the car is with Bryan at work. Ugh. Back in house. Cue meltdown... It's as if I had dangled a porkchop in front of him and then snatched it away. He's 5 months people, sure I "told" him we were going to the park, but please, he didnt really know. But somehow he knew.He melted down fast and hard. It wasn't pretty. And this mommas head couldn't take another second. So, I had to improvise.

With A blanket, bumbo, rattle, book and baby (and a puppy at my heels) we created the best darn park we could, right in our backyard.

And by golly, it was just what we needed. A little story time, a little rattle dancing with mom as lead vocals, and a happy puppy we got some much needed fresh air.

And hey, only 12 Mosquitos were harmed in the process.

{ in this moment... }

...the kitchen is a mess

...I'm still in my sweats

...the dogs need to go out

...my lunch is sitting on the coffee table, uneaten

...there are plenty of unfinished projects

....I choose this instead:

{ 4 Months }

Weight: 14lb 10oz

Length: 26.75in

Likes: You want to stand.  All the time.  Sitting and laying down is no fun.  You have such strong legs and you love to use them! Your new favorite love is your jumper.  It was a gift from Jen and her momma and it's perfect.  You press the buttons and play music for yourself non-stop!  When you first got it, your feet didn't even touch the ground, but now they do!  You also have learned to play with your rattle and rings and you love those too!  

Dislikes:  You still aren't a big fan of your tummy time.  You just roll right over.  Within seconds, every single time.  You also don't like to be held facing in.  I guess you are just like your mom, very curious and want to see everything that is going on.  

Milestones: Still sleeping through the night!  However, naps are a different story.  We are really struggling trying to get you to take naps during the day.  You will nap in the morning for about an hour, but that's about it.  The rest of the day you may nod off here and there, but nothing consistent.  We're not giving up though! :)

You are still eating about 6 oz every 3 hours.  We are just about to start with some baby food!  I'm thinking we will start with some oatmeal and see how that goes!  

Still not quite sitting up on your own.  You have gone a good 1-2 minute stretch sitting up, but you are definitely not strong enough that we feel comfortable leaving you unattended.  You are so close though!

You are teething.  It's official.  Who knows when the tooth will actually pop through, but we can feel it and you are definitely showing all the signs.  We pray they come quickly...

You are growing out of all of your clothes so quickly!  You wore 0-3 month clothes for so long, we thought you would never out grow them, but now you are quickly outgrowing your 3-6 month onesies and sleepers and we're thinking this size isn't going to last quite as long.

Firsts: You have started grabbing at things intentionally.  We will set your toys down in front of you and you will reach for them with such determination.  You don't always succeed, but you keep trying!

You had your first airplane ride!  (Well, it was a day after you turned 4 months, but that's okay :)  It was very exciting and everyone on the plane commented on how great you did, most not even realizing there was a baby onboard!  You just slept in my arms almost the entire trip!  

Your vacation had a lot of "firsts" --- first time on the beach, first time in the Ocean (Gulf to be accurate), watching your first sunset, first time seeing where Aunt Lauren lives, first time eating sand...it was bound to happen!  You enjoyed it all.

Fun Fact: You have a new "home."  Your dad finally convinced me to move your nursery from the side room off of our bedroom to your own nursery across the hall.   This momma put up a fight, but it really was a good decision in the end.  We painted and got all the big furniture in, but are still working on the finishing touches.  We really, really need some blinds to keep you asleep past 6:45am, but besides that, we all love your new nursery!

{ sitting, pinning, & praying... }

Watch out world...we have a sitter!  That's right!  E has been able to sit up assisted for quite a while now, but never really showed any interest in wanting to do it on his own.  Until yesterday!  And now, of course, it's all he wants to do.  Only problem is, when he falls --- he falls hard!  So,  I don't go very far, but it is fun watching him learn and hit milestones along the way.  You would think he was going for an olympic medal in sitting by the way Bryan and I cheered for him.  

{ Ellis sits --- 9/15/2012 }

He surely would have won the gold...

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In other news, I have been making a lot of Pinterest meals.  Bryan wanted to know what dinner was going to be before I looked in the cupboards at 5:30 each night, and I guess I don't blame him.  Planning ahead really does work better whether I am ready to admit it or not :)  

A good friend recommended we try this Sweet and Sour Chicken recipe she made from Pinterest.  She claimed her kids liked it better than take out!  Now, I'm a little partial to my Hunan, but I decided I would give it a try! 

Turns out, it was pretty darn good!  And not too difficult.  It was a bit more sweet than sour and in the future I might cut the brown sugar down, but besides that, the way the chicken is cooked is really kinda fun and tastes great!  I even was able to fry up the chicken in the morning while E was napping and then I just made the sauce and threw it in the oven for an hour and it was ready when B got home! 

This is for sure to be added to our dinner rotation!

{ Sweet and Sour Chicken - http://pinterest.com/pin/225461525066285696/ }

Okay, fine, I don't really have a dinner "rotation".  Do people really have this?  Or is it just something people say about meals they will make again.  I don't have a literal list of meals that I rotate.  Maybe I should...how novel an idea.  Okay, I guess people really do this. 

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What I can tell you is that the following meal, unless completely overhauled, will NOT be entering any rotation of mine.  Introducing, the worst overnight oatmeal I've ever eaten.  Now, let me be fair,  99% of the time I blame yucky food on myself.  And I do in this case as well.  I am sure I did something wrong, because many people have told me these are the bomb-digity.  I somehow managed to follow the recipe perfectly (minus the chia seeds - which are listed as only optional) and my oatmeal turned into yucky-crunchy-yet soupy-sour-oatmeal-mush.  I kid you not, I spit it out of my mouth.  (kinda of like how B spit the moldy cucumber that I accidentally served him out of his mouth yesterday --- but that's a whole 'nother story...)

{ Overnight Oatmeal - http://pinterest.com/pin/225461525066107663/ }

Help me out, anyone know what I could have done wrong?  I mean they sure do look pretty!

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Okay...must get back to work while I am childless and at Starbucks (glorious...) but I wanted to share a bit of a story with you today.  A friend of mine is going through one of the roughest times of her life with a lot of unknowns coming up in the very near future.  Without sharing too much detail could you all just keep my friend "C" and her little unborn baby A in your prayers this week?  I know that's very vague, but God knows her story and will hear ya.  I promise :)  Thank you.