Benny & the Brit

July 27, 2014

Finn at 14 Months

July 14, 2014

14 months old

Milestones

recording all the firsts

Since turning ONE Finn has begun jibber jabbering a lot more but the main words we can understand are "mama" and "dada." On June 25th I am pretty sure I heard him say his very first word: "bye!" As I carried him out of the gym I said "wave bye bye" and he waved his hand like he normally does in little circles and said "bye" as clear and loud as he could. I asked him to say it again but he didn't and hasn't since.
Before he even turned ONE we would hold our hand up and say "high five" and he would slap our hand but now he does it every time he's prompted and he does it with much more oomph! It seriously is the cutest thing.
He feeds himself pretty well but still hasn't mastered the fork. However, he still loves to hold the fork in one hand while using his other hand to eat.
Finn can stack blocks, put caps back on bottles, and with a little help use the shape sorter. He's got excellent coordination and fine motor skills.
He claps his hands on cue. Just start clapping and he likely will clap along.

some of Finn's

Favorite Things

Sneaking into daddy's office. He knows he shouldn't be in there which is probably why he wants to be in there so bad. He immediately goes over to glass jar of baseballs and tries to take them out or he heads over to the printer to turn it on and off. When we catch him he knows he's in trouble and runs away from us. He's too cute, how can we ever be mad at this little munch?
He'll find a toy or household object and like it so much that he holds on to it in one hand for hours while playing with other toys.
Trying to carry too many balls, toys or snack in his tiny little hands.
Destroying block towers that daddy and I make. He'll see us making one from across the room and come over to us just to break it apart.
After making a complete mess of his tray, dumping the contents of his plate on his tray and spreading it around, Finn likes to help clean it up with a cloth when he is done.
Eating anything he gets his hands on. Still, we need to keep a close eye on him because he'll put rocks, leaves or other dangerous objects in his mouth.
Hanging on his mommy's leg or pushing her away from the counter so that she'll pick him up and cuddle him.
He'll give us a big cheesy smile, even lift up his chin and squint his eyes and we can't help but smile back. It works vice versa too, if we smile at him he'll smile at us back. He is often so happy and brightens up our lives.

some of Finn's

Not so Favorite Things

When we remove objects he puts in his mouth that shouldn't be there or take away something he shouldn't be playing with, or remove him from a room he shouldn't be in. Lately we will say "NO" in a very loud tone or even smack his little hand. This upsets him very much but he is learning to stay away from the fireplace, to stop removing and eating the flowers from the table etc.

Finn was the Spurs biggest fan! Go Spurs Go!

Thank goodness Spurs won the finals or we would have had one unhappy baby (and daddy).

Mr. Patriotic

Fourth of July

Finn, the grill master.

For Memorial Day Finn manned his new grill and cooked up some tasty hotdogs and hamburgers.

chatting away as he grills

"Would you like mustard with that?"

busy busy

taste testing

July 07, 2014

I know i'm not the only one who spends a fortune on beauty products said to work miracles and made out of who knows what. So much money is spent on over the counter and even prescription products to beautify ourselves when there are great remedies in our gardens, pantries, or the grocery aisle that are natural and super cheap.

Recently, I was asked to give a presentation to the women at church on the use of lemons in our beauty regimen. In my preparation I learned so much and have begun using some of the recipes in my daily routine.

I had fun making each of the ladies their own lemon sugar scrubs. Mine sits next to my kitchen sink; a little of it goes a long way and I like to use it after washing dishes. The coconut oil softens, the sugar exfoliates and the lemon cleanses, leaving them soft and smelling fresh.

I've included the recipes below so you can try them for yourself. Each of them are EASY, CHEAP, and QUICK so don't be afraid to try making them for yourself.

Lemon beauty recipes

Strengthen nails: Soaking nails into lemon juice for about 10 minutes and rinsing them with warm water once a week will not only help them to grow but will also remove any discoloration.

Heal acne and remove blackheads: Lemons' antibacterial and antifungal properties make them a natural alternative to treat acne. Simply slice open a lemon and rub it across your face. Or you can add a few drops of honey to a lemon half before applying it directly to the area where you have blackheads. Wait five to 10 minutes before rinsing off with cold water.

Diminish discolored skin spots: If you're bothered by freckles or age spots, dissolve a pinch of sugar in 2 tablespoons lemon juice. Apply the mixture to each spot with a cotton ball or a facial tissue. Repeat every few days until the spots have lightened to your liking and given your skin a more even tone.

Lighten your hair: Skip the dye. This is a perfect and gradual remedy for those sunny summer days. Mix the juice from four lemons with ¼ cup of warm water, put it in a spray bottle, and spray it in your hair until it's damp. Make sure you only expose your hair to the sun for about 30-60 minutes, depending on how light you want to make it. After you’re done, take a shower and use conditioner, as lemon juice can sometimes dry out your hair.

Calm dry scalp and remedy dandruff: Rub 1 tablespoon lemon juice into dry hair, down to the scalp. Shampoo and rinse as usual. Then, rinse hair again using a solution of 2 cups water and 2 tablespoons lemon juice. Repeat every other day for 1 week. Your black shirts will thank you.

Whiten teeth: Mix a little baking soda with the juice of one lemon. The mixture should bubble slightly. Using a cotton swab, wipe saliva and excess plaque from your teeth before brushing on the mixture. Leave the mixture on your teeth for a minute before gently brushing it off with a toothbrush.

Soothe chapped lips: An overnight beauty treatment that only requires slicing open a lemon is an exfoliant for chapped lips. Rub the fruit onto your pucker, then wash off the next morning. The lemon juice will remove any dead skin cells so that your lipstick goes on super smooth.

Cleanse and exfoliate skin: Mix up a ½ cup sugar, ¼ cup coconut oil and the juice of 1 lemon for a fragrant lemon sugar scrub to cleanse and soften your skin.

June 25, 2014

Hey little munch, mind your manners!

Finn. Guilty of multiple infractions:

-spreading his lunch across the tray and onto the floor-

-smooshing carrots in his hands and on his tray-

-spitting out his green beans-

-putting his foot up on the tray-

-sticking out his tongue-

-laughing about it-

Food Finn is loving:

blueberries

watermelon

cheddar bunnies

raisins

banana

smoothies

steamed carrots and peas

flax seed waffles with cashew butter

guacamole

sweet potato fries

beans

couscous

popsicles

Food Finn turns his nose up to:

macaroni and cheese

oatmeal

green beans

sour blueberries

Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily is quite the undertaking for me. I have never called myself a "cook" or claimed to be a good one. One meal I could (barely) handle but now that I have a little runt who needs three meals a day- i'm exhausted. Not only do I have to think up healthy and yummy meals for him, I have to prepare and clean up after he eats it (or doesn't eat it and just makes a mess of it). Emphasis on the "healthy" meals needs to be noted--it's so easy to feed ourselves processed, microwaved, nutrition-less food so things get much more complicated and time consuming when going for the wholesome, fresh, steamed route. I think i'm doing ok and I hope i'm getting better at it. It is my goal to embrace this (since i'll be doing it for the rest of my life unless i'm living in my dreams and hire a cook). I love food so why not learn to cook it and love doing it? I'll give myself this pep talk daily because I totally need it.

here a moo, there a moo

We visited a farm out in the good ol' countryside of Texas to celebrate the birthday party of Finn's friend, Cole. At first Finn was shocked by the loud "mooing" but he became intrigued and not a bit afraid. He fed the cows, talked to the cows, stared at the cows, couldn't get enough of the cows.

As I tried to capture the best photos of my little guy with the cows (as a good mama does) I knelt down on the ground and soon found out that I knelt on a fire ant hill! Who knew what pain those little pests can cause?! I cried inside for about ten minutes and may have thought I was dying. It swelled up and stung like heck. I definitely learned my lesson.

Texas problems.

There's a saying here in Texas "don't squat with yer spurs on." I will now coin my own phrase, "don't squat on an ant hill."

June 09, 2014

Getaway to South Padre

Set ourselves free for a few days to catch some rays, swim in the ocean and get some R&R. We drove 5 hours to the very southern tip of Texas where we stayed at the Pearl Resort with our friends, the Fosters.

Our first day was sunny but the next two days were rainy and windy (as heck). No bueno! We made the best of it and visited an amazing turtle rescue and watched Rio 2 at the movie theater. When the rain let up you were sure to find us in the ocean or hot tub. The weather wasn't ideal but it was sooo worth it to getaway for a bit, to enjoy some fun with one another and our friends.

This little stud...

The Fosters have a two year old daughter, Nova who has cutest personality and says the funniest things. She loves Finn and calls him "Finny!"

Finn splashed in the ocean waves and played in the sand for the very first time! He loved EVERYTHING about it… even the waves toppling him over, water in his eyes, eating sand and gulping salty ocean.

June 07, 2014

Finn's 12th Month

May 14, 2014

12 months old

Milestones

recording all the firsts

Finn is now feeding himself pretty well… which also means more messes and more clean-up (which has essentially become my life as his mom)
Finn experienced the ocean for the first time! He dug his toes in the sand, tried to eat it, got toppled over by the waves, splashed and gulped the water… he loved it!
He claps his hands on cue. Just start clapping and he likely will clap along.

some of Finn's

Favorite Things

Making that funny noise with his finger and his lip--he likes to do it to his and other people's lips.
Looking at himself in the mirror--making faces and babbling. (He knows he looks good.)
Picnics in the park. Finn knows what a picnic is all about now. Once the blanket is laid out he wobbles right over and plops himself down on it. After munching he wanders around, finds bugs, tries to eat sticks, watches his mommy do handstands and cartwheels, and gets spun around in the air (who can resist not doing those things when on a green open field?)
Splashing in the water at the beach, Sea World or in his own backyard kiddie pool.
Being cozied up on the couch drinking a smoothie for breakfast from a big kid cup and straw while watching Baby Einstein or Harry the Bunny.
Emptying the cabinets and drawers. Pulling every book off the shelf (then he proceeds to sit quietly--for not long enough--while he turns the pages of the books).
Sharing an apple or pear with mommy (even though he STILL has no teeth he seems to get some good bites)
His very own toothbrush- now he can mimic mommy and daddy without trekking their toothbrush around the house.
The toilet bowl--yes we've caught him splashing around in there before... gross, gross and more gross!

some of Finn's

Not so Favorite Things

Being away from his mommy. He is beginning to be CLINGY. Not a word we like around here. Of course I love to hold him and be there for him but we are going to have to work on this…
Whining. Ok, so it's more of his parent's "not so favorite thing." Finn has discovered whining means he doesn't have to cry but he can still get his way. We are going to have to work on this as well…