Around & Around We Go

Watching this clip might make you a little dizzy, but really, it's worth watching just to hear Mathias laugh. He's always so much fun...and believe me when I say, it was his idea to climb up on the office chair and lay down. He insisted on being spun around. :)

Mathias WALKS!

God bless moments like this! I am ecstatic beyond belief. My boy just took his very first steps on his own today! What can I say, my son's the shiznit. We were chilling in the kitchen just snacking on some turkey and then...bada-bing-bada-boom...the boy is mobile on two feet! I'm going nuts! Must have been the power-enriched turkey! :)

(Please excuse the mess of toys and my obnoxiously loud voice. I was his only cheerleader at the time.)

(Later on that night...)

Shy-Schmy

I think I've written at least three or four posts already on the highlights of Mathias' dancing. Seriously. As we all know by now, the kid likes to shake his body to any familiar beat...particularly morning cartoons. Yesterday morning, prior to us driving to Grandma's, it was the Mickey Mouse "Hot Dog" dance that led the way. Don't ask. I think it's safe to say though, that the tune has a pretty good beat.

So for those that have seen his first dance move...and second...and possibly the third or so...I now present Mathias' latest hip hoppin'! What's even funnier is watching the very last part of the clip when little man acts all shy and just stares at me. Puh-leeease. My son has never been camera-shy. Look who his mother is. :) Clearly, it was an attempt to appear modest and sweet for all of his viewers. He even sat down on cue - right when the music ended! Silly boy.

Getting So Big

My little baby isn't so little anymore...

Mathias is still a baby in terms of his age, but size-wise - the kid's a tree. I can't believe how big he's grown in just 13 months. His hair has always been long, even as a newborn, but now it's thicker than ever so I'm constantly trimming it. His waist is so long and his legs go for miles. It's amazing the physical changes a child goes through in such a short period of time. He's healthy, but because he's so tall for his age, his weight leans more toward the slimmer side. So for now I'm just trying to fatten him up in terms of more calories. So far so good. For the most part Mathias eats the same meals we do and I'm constantly experimenting with new foods to expand his palette. However, he is pretty active so it's hard to keep him from losing some of his baby fat (insert another sad face).

Company Picnic

A good friend of mine, Patti - who was also my direct supervisor when I worked at the office - texted me one day and asked if I would join her as her guest for her company picnic this year. Not only was I surprised considering I no longer worked for the company; I was also very touched to join the annual picnic with former coworkers. They welcomed me with open arms and "we miss you" hugs. :) I felt awkward at first, but Patti insisted that I was still considered a part of the "team" even though I was gone. Last year when I attended the picnic as an employee, Mathias was only 2 months old and I remember Jay and I proudly showing him off at that time. Now here I am, one year later, as my former boss's date! lol It was very nice to see old friends and familiar faces. *Thanks, Mama Ray, for inviting me!*

Me & My BFF Patti :)

A Day at Emo Sara's

After a long afternoon of shopping, eating and then hanging out at my sister's, it was finally time to go. Little man had a blast with his Emo(Aunt) Sara. She was being a total goofball - it must run in the family. When we got home, Mathias insisted on staying up a little later than usual so we goofed around for another half hour downstairs then eventually migrated upstairs into the guest room. I even tried pretending to be asleep so Mathias would get the same idea. Ha! Yeah, right. Eventually, he tuckered out though and was ready for bed as soon as the camera was off. I immediately followed his lead.

(You're Not Sleeping, Mommy!)

Chasing Mathias at Grandma's

Visiting my mother's home up in the mountains is always a treat for my son. Every room is a new place for him to explore and he absolutely loves it. However, there's this one room in Mom's house - we all refer to it as the "tea room" because of the Victorian-like furniture in there - that's completely off-limits for kiddies & pets. The room is filled with delicate figurines, crystal and other expensive collectibles that she acquired from all over the world during our travels growing up. I think the most attention-grabbing items in the room are her exotic flowers, particularly her Hawaiian orchids. The tea room, along with the rest of the house, stay pretty immaculate and are only messy when we arrive because of the toys and blankets we lay out everywhere. Mom always loves it when we visit, but she's also just as happy to see us go so she can get her house back in order from the "damages" my son makes. Sorry, Mom, about the toilet paper! Hehe...

(Exploring the Unknown & Bonking His Head Onto Glass)

(Discovers T.P.)

Reading Time!

Mathias loves his little book and even more so when I offer it to him. I used to read it to him when he was just a few months old in his nursery where I'd rock him to sleep. Now the little booger just has to hold the book himself and makes up his own story using his own sounds and words. I'm sure you've all heard this story before:

"Baa-baa, da-da-da-da-da, fah-fah. Raa-ra, Raa-ra? Da-da-da-da-da-da...buh, buh!"

It's personally one of my favorites and every once in awhile, Mathias will change it up for me. Sometimes, he'll speed right through the pages and finishes off the book by throwing it across the room. That's how you know it had a good ending.

Are We There Yet?

My sister, Sara, was off today so the two of us decided to take little Mickey out for a day at Grandma's. Since the outing was my idea, I offered to pick-up Sara from her house this morning and then we would leave from there to Mom's house in Divide, CO. First of all, Sara lives south from our town so it takes a good half hour to get there. Secondly, Mom's house is about a good hour or so west from my sister's. Total driving time to and from is about three hours. Add the fact that Mathias hadn't taken his first nap yet and it feels more like five hours. Let me just point out though that the entire day at Mom's was great. We all had a good time walking around the yard and enjoying the fresh mountain air. Mom proudly showed us her latest gardens and new concrete patios underneath the deck. We all enjoyed the most delicious Korean lunch as well as being silly with Mathias. That part of the visit was nice.

It was the long ride home that was...well, horrible. Mathias was fussy, sick of sitting in his car seat and just plain wanted to get out. Naturally, Sara and I did our best to comfort and entertain him the whole way to her house, but to no avail. It was brutal. I think I only saw Mathias act that way once when I was with Jay and he hadn't slept yet. Anyway, by the time I dropped off my sister, Mathias was in tears and screaming his lungs out. Poor little guy was just tired and wanted the comfort of his bed. I knew he'd eventually fall asleep and did my best to hurry home. I still had another 30 minutes of driving before we were at my house.

Just when I thought it couldn't get any worst...it did. Mathias was screaming and I was doing my best to give him his sippy cup while I drove. As I turned to face forward again, I spot a cop drive past me and then quickly do a U-turn only to turn on his lights and pull me over. WTH! Rolling my eyes and muttering some unpleasant obscenities, I pull my Jeep to the side of the road in front of a house. Fabulous, I thought. Now Mathias will never get to sleep. The officer walks toward my window and kindly tells me that I was going 10 over the speed limit. I give him my best smile and say, "I know." Then he looks behind me and sees that my son is crying hysterically and that I'm holding his juice in one hand. I quickly hand over my licence & documents and out of nowhere start to cry. ***I once tried bringing on the waterworks when I got pulled over for speeding many years ago. I of course failed miserably at my pathetic attempt to gain pity from the officer at that time. It also probably didn't help that the cop was a female who just didn't buy my crybaby act.*** So there I was, bawling (for real this time) about how I had just driven all the way from Divide and then had to drop off my sister out here in the boonies...my son is fussy and wants to go home and I still have quite a way to drive...and I was hot and tired and blah blah blah. The officer just looked at me and said he would be right back. During his walk back to his vehicle, Mathias was continuously crying bloody murder. I don't think it was even two minutes before the officer came walking back to me. He handed me back my stuff and calmly replied, "Ma'am, I apologize that you had such rough day, but please just watch your speed from here on, OK?" I thanked him and apologized under heavy sobbing. Surprisingly, I didn't get a ticket. Wiping my face and making sure Mathias was OK, I drove off *slowly* and was on my way. Little man even fell asleep as soon I drove off. I couldn't wait to get home. As I drove in complete silence for the rest of way, I began thinking to myself...I really should try and memorize that excuse I just used...crying infant excluded.

Chipotle Grilled Chicken w/ Avocado Sandwich

I stole this recipe trying to find more inventive ways in cooking chicken. Our family loves chicken & fish simply because they taste great and it's a healthier alternative to red meat. I usually like beef if it's made Korean-style...or the occasional hamburger. Otherwise, chicken is where it's at. To prevent the ho-hum of the usual chicken fajitas, baked chicken or chicken stew, etc....I bring you a delicious alternative using - you guessed it - chicken. *Thx to the website for sharing!*

INGREDIENTS

3 Tbps olive oil

1 Tbsp lime juice

1/2 teaspoon chipotle chile powder (less or more depending on how much heat you want)

1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 2 breast halves)

4 small slices of Monterey Jack cheese

4 sets of hamburger buns

1 avocado, peeled, seeded and sliced

Iceberg or lettuce of preferenceMayonnaise

METHOD

1 In a shallow bowl, stir together the olive oil, lime juice, and chipotle chile powder.

2 Place the chicken breasts between two sheets of wax paper. Use a meat pounder to pound the breasts to an even thickness of about 1/2 inch. Cut off excess fat. If you are starting with 2 half-pound chicken breast halves, cut each one in half so that you have 4 pieces (to better fit the buns). Place the chicken breasts in the marinade, turning to coat. Cover with plastic wrap. Let marinate for at least 15 minutes, preferably an hour.

3 Heat your grill on high heat if you are using a gas grill, or prepare coals for direct heat if you are using charcoal. You can also use a cast-iron grill pan on your stove if you do not have a grill. Grill the chicken pieces a couple minutes on each side, until cooked through. Once you have cooked the chicken pieces on one side and flipped them, add a slice of cheese to the chicken. Cover the grill for half a minute to melt the cheese. Toast the buns on the grill as well.

4 Assemble the sandwiches - bun bottom, chicken with melted cheese, avocado and lettuce, mayonnaise on the top bun.

Serves 4.

To Be A Cat

Aah...to live the life of a feline. Must be nice to soak in warm rays whenever you feel like and sleep all day. Your meals are always readily available. Your head and neck massaged while you sleep. When you stretch, your soft belly is rubbed ever so gently and your back gets scratched every time you walk by. The action of the week is possibly getting chased for a brief moment by one of your brother dogs, but really - they're not as small and swift as you are - so it's merely a rush to get away unscathed each time. Silly canines...just big needy animals that constantly hover their masters every chance they get. It's soooo much nicer to just lay around and do absolutely nothing...except maybe bathe yourself while more afternoon sunlight pour in through the windows.

4th of July

The absence of my father at this year's Fourth of July sucked, but we still managed to pull off a nice little shindig at our house with the rest of our friends and fam. Normally, my dad is the one to setup this patriotic function every year. He goes all out with decorations, food and fireworks each and every time. So you can imagine the emptiness everyone felt when we all celebrated this year. Despite his current assignment overseas, we all knew that Dad wanted to see us have a good time. If you know our family...you'll know that the females are notorious for having a good time...anywhere we are! :) My mom even stayed for awhile which was awesome. Little Mathias also had fun on the patio riding his buggy, but then eventually got fussy towards bedtime and wanted to chill indoors with Mama. Other than that, I think this year's 4th was pretty chill.