nothing gets past him

mordy is a pretty great dog.  he is cuddly and loving and incredibly enthusiastic about everything.  he also thinks that his mission in life is to protect our family from anything that may be harmful.  this includes friends, giant grasshoppers, cars, wind, the vacuum cleaner, and most recently the walker.  here is a video of mordy's gallant effort to keep his family safe.  

gabe, of course, finds it terribly delightful to torture poor mordy by running around the house like this all day.

:: day 58 ::

:: day 59 ::

good friends

gabe and i spent a good portion of the day with our friends, the baughers, today.  arden and esther adore gabe, and he really enjoys playing with them (although, he doesn't really play with them, more like next to them, and with their toys).  the girls are so great with gabe every time we see them. they talk to him and care for him and are truly some of the sweetest little girls we know.  it was such a lovely afternoon with them.

oh, and did i mention that dana let me play with her camera (a canon EOS 20d)!  it was a blast, and although i love my camera, there is just something about a camera with a shutter that really clicks that makes my heart swell!  maybe one day, i will have one of my very own...

:: day 57 ::

looking forward to the summer...

:: day 56 ::

today i stumbled upon what i think may be my favorite thing in a long time!  i posted these pictures straight from our flickr page, and when clicked on, they take you to our photostream!  this is something that i have wanted to do for a long time, and it will be difficult for me not to go back over all of our previous posts and reload all of the pictures this way!  what a timesaver this is!

a good read

recently, i have been going to a study for moms.  it is based on a book by sally clarkson, the main speaker from the moms conference that i went to last month.  the book, the ministry of motherhood, is a great read for all mothers, but i have found it especially inspiring and thought provoking as a mother of a very young child.  it has challenged me to consider the ministry that i have to my son and how i will glorify God through our relationship.  i would definitely recommend it to all the mothers that i know.  

:: day 54 ::

:: day 55 ::

dang, that baby is cute!

this weekend afforded us another opportunity to dress gabe in his suit.  this time, there were little shiny black shoes to go with it, and he couldn't have looked cuter!  

:: day 52 ::

:: day 53 ::

this week, we went to both publix and winn-dixie for maximum savings, and while we spent a little more than we usually do, it was worth it.  between the two trips this is what we got...

we spent $58.63, and we saves $95.00 (a savings of 62%).  also, when i send our reciept for this week to pillsbury, they will be sending me a $10 publix card.  not too shabby.

today i love...

::  the robins that have chosen our yard as a stopping place.  there are hundreds of them eating berries from the trees all around us.  (they are also the reason that i accidentally locked myself and gabe out of the house on wednesday!  no worries, steve was almost home from work)

::  these thumbless infant mittens-in-progress that i couldnt resist starting even though so many projects sit waiting to be finished.  

::  the persistently cool weather.  every time i think that it is going to stay warm, i am surprised by another chilly morning.

::  this so cute tree fabric that i couldn't resist buying

::  this blog's "fat quarter project of the day" series... so many fun ideas.

::  the joy that a well rested baby brings!

:: day 51 ::

fifty days

50 days now complete in the gabe photo challenge.  not bad.

:: day 49 ::

:: day 50 ::

(photo #50 courtesy of allison's little girl, gabby, who was playing with my camera today!)

a friend to laugh at

i took this video last week when gabe and mordy were playing in the bathtub.  i thought it would be worth a little baby nudity to see how hilarious gabe finds the dogs.  

:: day 47 ::

:: day 48 ::

woo hoo!

today was a great day at publix.  we didn't need as much groceries this week as we will be out of town this weekend.  we spent $36.52 and we saved $83.18 for a savings of almost 70%!  we ended up with 14 (yes, 14!) boxes of free dog treats (thanks allison and judith for the additional coupons!) which i will now be distributing among all of our dog-owning friends.  if our humane society was still open, that would be a great use for them, but for now, i will just make all of the dogs we know happy (so if you read this and see me on a regular basis and want some for your dog, let me know and i will promptly get you a box!)

we went to lunch after church today with some friends, and while we were waiting to be seated, gabe slept on steve's shoulder!  it was a sweet moment, and the perfect portrait for today.

:: day 46 ::

valentines day

yesterday, we had a valentine's playgroup at pirate ship park (a really cool place to play).  the older kids decorated heart-shaped cookies while gabe had a little swing time, but mostly sat happily in the wagon.  i think he would have sat in that wagon all day if i had let him.  he also growled at the other kids a lot which was awkward/scary/weird for them, but hilarious for me!  

:: day 44 ::

today, i let gabe lay in the pinestraw, and he stayed there for a really long time.  i think that he has a new appreciation for laying down, because i catch him doing it randomly throughout the day now.  

:: day 45 ::

also, as i type, this is how he is sleeping in his crib...

lemon zest

liz mctwigan, a good friend of mine, just opened her own etsy shop as well.  it is full of cute pins and hair clips, all custom made!  definitely take a look.

life around here has been pretty uneventful.  gabe and i did go to cross park to enjoy this beautiful day, and saw several interesting birds, including a kingfisher, an oriole, and a bald eagle (i identified the first two when i got home with a little help from patty!)  it was a perfect day to be outside.

:: day 41 ::

:: day 42 ::

:: day 43 ::

busy

gabe has become such a busy guy.  sometimes, i will catch him walking places instead of crawling.  it shocks me every time.  when he is crawling, he is lightning fast.  i just love the little boy that he is becoming!

:: day 40 ::

this week we did very well at publix and walgreens spending $55.25 (a little more than usual because it included dog food, which is usually not on our grocery bill) and saving $53.56!  a savings of nearly 50%!  fun!

wow

now that is a face.

:: day 39 ::

in other news, i have officially opened my etsy shop and am so excited to be finished sewing for a while!  i love to sew, but it will be nice not to have a mess on my kitchen table every night.  and to focus on some other things.  so, when you get a chance, go over and see it and let me know what you think and what i should add to it next time!

a nice surprise

this morning, my dad came to visit and to help us with the backyard.  our friends patty and jim helped us haul two loads of dirt and fill the gardens, and we also spread some pinestraw .  gabe had a blast playing with my dad, being pulled in the garden wagon, and practicing walking.   it was such a pleasant surprise to have my dad here, and gabe really enjoyed all the extra attention.

:: day 28 ::

happy birthday, steve!

today was steve's 25th birthday.  we went to tgi friday's for dinner,  got an appetizer and an entree and a dessert and a drink, and payed only for the drink and the entree.  the dessert and the appetizer were free because, in keeping with my new frugal lifestyle, joined their rewards club for free.  i love free stuff.  unfortunately, i was unable to get any pictures of steve's birthday dinner because the camera was acting up.

:: day 26 ::

:: day 27 ::

thirty-five

:: day 35 ::

what's that noise?

yesterday, as i was pulling into the driveway, i found myself thinking, "what is that weird noise coming from the back seat?"  a glance in the mirror told me that it was the sound of gabe furiously sucking on his big toe.  go figure.

:: day 34 ::

broccoli

gabe LOVES broccoli.  i think it might be his favorite food, which is fine with me.  

:: day 33 ::

here is what i got at walgreens and wal-mart today.  i dont usually do wal-mart, but there were a number of good deals, so i made the trip.

i spent $6.91 today, and i saved $24.63.  we did pretty well at publix this week, too, spending $52.53 and saving $28.82.  this coupon game is so fun!

ten months

gabe's ten month birthday snuck up on me.  it has been a busy couple of days, with much work going into the backyard again, and a visit from my mom!  here are a few things about ten-month-old gabe:

-crawling is still his primary mode of transportation, but he practices walking more and more (usually only a step or two before he gets tied up and tumbles to the floor).

-he has four teeth and two more on the way.

-besides the cereal and applesauce he eats for breakfast, he is eating all table food.  he really loves broccoli, bread and bananas at the moment.  he also ate a slice of red bell pepper that he snuck off of my plate at lunch today.

-this week, i taught him to say daddy (although it has a dramatic pause in the middle:  daaa-deee).  

-he always offers to share.  food, bottle, pacifier, paper, toy... whatever he is enjoying at the moment, he offers it to the nearest person (sometimes forcefully!).

:: day 31 ::

:: day 32 ::