15 Month Checkup

Just reading over the material from the doc.

Big boy had his 15 month checkup today. Everything checked out great and he is one healthy boy! He weighs 23 lbs (90th percentile) and is about 33 inches tall (95th percentile).  His weight gain has slowed a bit, but that's just because he is literally going nonstop from the time he wakes up, until the time he goes to bed. Heck, he's even performing acrobatics in his sleep most nights! HA! He's long, lean, and healthy and I am so proud....about the healthy part anyway. That's all that matters. 

 Playing and reading while we wait for the doctor.

Hudson just loves the nurses. He's a huge flirt and knows how to work it. They, of course, just can't get enough of him. He does really well at appointments, until the doc comes in and puts the stethoscope on his back. Once that happens, it all goes downhill. I guess he knows that's when the unpleasant stuff begins....the cold stethoscope, putting things in his ears, nose, etc. Being examined. Then come the shots. Only 2 today, but that's plenty! I'm not sure if it's the actual shots or the being held down he hates more. That boy HATES being restrained in any way!

When it was all said and done, he was a happy boy again. Ready to get the heck outta dodge, but a happy boy. :-)

He favors my dad SO much in this picture! 

Such a happy boy! So thankful for a happy, healthy baby boy!

I can't believe our next checkup isn't until he's TWO! He's growing up and I don't like it! :( I sure am enjoying every second of watching him grow, though. Now, if we can just work on that hair. ;-)

Sneak Peek.

I have been busily working on the bedroom, searching and searching for just the right pieces to finish up my vision. I had some luck and wanted to share a sneak peek. 

 Simple white curtains. Oh my, how they complete the room! It is amazing how they just tie everything together, and keep the room so light and airy. Notice, there are new lamps on the nightstands. Love those crystal lamps with simple white shades. The other lamps were fine, but these are much more modern and the shades don't stick out as much as the other ones, meaning they can be put closer to the wall. I moved the old ones to the guest room.

This. This thing is one of my favorite pieces I've gotten so far. I found it at TJMaxx and just loved the phrase. I plan to put it on a wall, just don't know exactly where yet. Love the silver vase too. Perfect little accent piece. And that chevron pattern you're seeing? Well, you can see the entire thing when I put up the final pictures later this week, once the mirror I ordered comes in and is put up. I looked EVERYWHERE for a mirror like I wanted but had no luck, so I decided to order one online. Hopefully it won't come in 3,000 pieces. :-)

I am beyond pleased with how the room is coming together and for the first time ever, I LOVE my bedroom! It's a place I want to be, a place I'm proud of, and a place that feels like a retreat. I couldn't have done any of it without my sweet husband. He's been so helpful, has painted walls, hung curtains, and put up with a lot from me. HA! I can't wait to get the mirror up to bring it all together. It's gorgeous! I'll post more pics then. I hope you're all having a great weekend!!

Wordless Wednesday

A Little Inspiration

I haven't gotten to venture out for things for the bedroom yet, but I plan to tomorrow and/or Friday. In the meantime, I've been perusing the internet and seeking out some inspiration for the project. Like I said earlier, I have a vision in my head of what I want the room to look like when it's done. I've found lots of good things that go along with that vision pretty well! I'm really excited to get out and shop!

Here's some of the ideas floating around in my head.

I'd like to have some kind of sitting area on the wall where the bed used to be. It's screaming for a chair and ottoman, or a chaise lounge, and a floor lamp, small table for a book or two, and something pretty on the wall. I kinda wanna be bold and go with a print...just not sure which one yet. I'll know it when I see it.

Some pillows for the chair/additional ones for the bed.

I'm not 100% sure if I want a rug or not. I think if I found the right color, it would look good. I don't want to do pattern overload, so whether or not it's a patterned rug would just depend on what other patterns are in the room. I think a round rug with the sitting area would be nice.

I most definitely need some curtains. I'll probably go with simple white, but I also love these from Target!!

Another rug I like. Not wild about the shade of blue in it though.

I am in LOVE with this mirror! I want a pretty mirror to go over the bed and this is perfect! I also like these options.....

And these are two rooms from my Pinterest. I love things about both of them and they're definitely inspiration rooms for me as I set out to get our room done.

I can't wait to get it finished and show it off! I'm really hoping it'll be done in the next week or two....just depends on what I can find and how much it's gonna cost!! :/

I hope you're having a great week so far!!

Wow, that was fast!!

I mean, seriously...that has to be some kind of record....even if only for us, it has to be! We headed out to Lowe's this morning right after Hudson finished breakfast to pick up the things (including the paint) we needed for our master bedroom paint project. By about 5pm, we were DONE!! I still can't believe it. I honestly figured I'd still be finishing it up on Wednesday, especially since we have a toddler to care for too. My sweet hubby knew how bad I wanted it done, and didn't waste any time getting started. We both worked all day, during Hudson's 2 naps, and while he was entertaining himself in baby jail his independent playpen...he'd do the trim work(moldings, doors, windows, baseboards, etc) and I'd roll. The first (of 4) wall was definitely the learning experience to get in our groove. It turned out well, though. ;-) The last 3 walls went smoothly and we are very pleased with the results.

I have big plans for the room, and will be going out this week to scope out some new things to finish it off. I just had to put up a little sneak peek of how things look thus far. I will update you when it's finished, of course.

If you remember, this is what it was like just this morning.....

Like a big 'ol bouquet of buttercups....not that there's anything wrong with that, just not my style.



Once again, here are the colors we considered....

 We went with the color on the left, Valspar Woodlawn Colonial Gray, and couldn't be happier with our choice. The reasons for not choosing the others: too dark, too blue, too brown. This was exactly what I wanted. I figured it'd take me weeks to find "the" color. I got lucky and found it right off the bat!

My super cute helper. (who HATES painting, but did it just for me.) Thanks a million, babe! ;)

 This man also admitted, once we were done, that he was pretty skeptical about the color we chose but didn't say anything because he didn't want to discourage me. What does he think about it now that it's done and there's no turning back???? HE LOVES IT! When will this man learn to trust me, already? Just kidding. Obviously he does, if he just ran with it. ;-)

And I mentioned that I was thinking about moving the bed to the other wall........

(excuse the tape...that wall wasn't quite dry at that point)

 We did, and I. Love. It. Can't believe we didn't do it earlier.

I will take some pictures during the day next time so you can get a more realistic idea of the color. It was dark and I had lamps and the fan light on, so you can't see the "true" color of it, like you can with natural light during the day.
The room looks so much bigger this way and gives me space for a little seating area (where the bed was before). And yes, there's more to the room than just this little area I keep taking pictures of. At the moment, it was covered in painting supplies and other junk so I'll wait and take a picture of every angle when it's done. :)

So, the paint is up and we are thrilled with it. Next, a few decorative pieces, perhaps a rug and some new bedding pillows for a pop of color(b/c clearly, our bedding pillows need some help and it doesn't help that I just threw them up there haphazardly), some light curtains, a cozy chair/ottoman, and an awesome mirror on the wall above the bed, and this room will be just as I have envisioned.
I admit I'm not the best painter in the world, but I definitely take pride in this room now. I will even more so once I get it done. I don't do a lot of DIY projects, crafts, etc. but when I do, it's always the BEST feeling!


If you're thinking of going gray, my advice is DO. IT. Just be sure you check out different shades (b/c there are a TON), test them out, and go with your gut. It's a beautiful color to work with, looks clean and modern, goes with everything, and complements every room, in my opinion.
I'll keep you updated on the progress of the room over the next week or two, as I get it finished.
I hope y'all have had a great weekend!

4 Shades of Gray

And, no, I haven't read the book. I just had to play off the title for this post.

We are getting ready to paint our bedroom. Right now, it is a lovely shade of light yellow. And by lovely, I mean...well, see for yourself.

(Excuse the dog beds. I'm toying with the idea of moving the bed to that wall.)

Yes, the walls and windows are bare. I plan on fixing that once the painting is finished. I have this whole vision in my head of how the room will look once it's all done. One step at a time, I keep telling myself. I also made the bed in a rush just so I could take a picture, so it is a little messy as well. I am not a fan of yellow....if you can't tell, especially for a grown-up master bedroom....and have been wanting to paint for a while now. Since we're renting, I made sure the homeowners are cool with it. They gave us the green light, so we're doing this!! This will be the very first time we've ever painted one single wall in all ours years of marriage and all the houses we've lived in.

I know I want to go with a gray color.(hence the title) I've seen pictures on Pinterest and it just looks so clean, modern, and is still a neutral, making it easy to decorate with. After looking online and narrowing down some shades I liked, I headed over to Lowe's to get some samples. I finally decided on 4 shades. They all have different undertones, which is good, so I can see how a variety of tones will look in the room. We put up a little sample of each this morning, and here's how they're lookin'.

From left to right, all by Valspar: Woodlawn Colonial Gray, Hazy Stratus, Aspen Gray, & Drizzling Mist

The picture is pretty close to how they look in real life. Of course, you can't see the true shades until you're standing in front of them.

I know which one I like the best, but I'll keep that to myself for now. You'll have to wait for the final results! (which I can hopefully get done in a week or so, and I just know you'll be sitting on the edge of your seat for it, HA!) I'm hoping that actually painting the samples on the wall will give us a kick in the pants to get it done...'cause we don't want 4 shades of paint randomly sitting on our walls forever. No turning back now! It's a little scary. :-)

Have a great weekend!!

15 Months

2 posts in the same day? Please, try not to faint.
I haven't done an update on Hudson in a while, 'cause I feel they aren't really necessary as frequently in the 2nd year. I'd mostly be repeating myself on a lot of things. So, I decided to do an update every 3 months, so here's the first one. :-)

15 Months!!! Your 2nd year is already a quarter of the way over! That just can't be so!

At 15 months, you:

• weigh 24-25 lbs (according to our home scale a few days ago)
• seem so much taller to me. I don't know exactly how tall you are, but you can reach things on the kitchen counter, dining table, and take the knobs off the stove!
• wear 18 month clothes, and size 5-5.5 shoe.
• wear a size 3 diaper, size 4 to bed
• sleep from about 8:30-9pm - 7:30-8am
• eat 3 meals a day, and 2 snacks. You drink whole milk with your meals. You love water and milk!
• LOVE breakfast and usually eat a big meal. Usually pancakes, strawberries, and sausage or cheesy eggs. You also love pretty much all fruit, mac & cheese (like crazy!!), green beans, rice, fries, grilled chicken, Goldfish, grilled cheese, turkey, ice cream/frozen yogurt, and a lot of other things.
• have 10 teeth!
• walk, run, jump, act crazy, you name it, you do it!
• are always raiding my cabinets...especially the tupperware cabinet.
• give hugs and kisses. You're more selfish with the kisses but LOVE giving hugs to everyone. Even the dogs. HA!
• still take 2 naps a day. Usually about 1.5 hours each.
• can touch your head, ear, nose, belly, and feet. We're working on more. :)
• wave hi and bye when you want to.
• say "mama", "goggah" which can sometimes mean daddy, or sometimes doggy(you can't say your d's yet, so they're g's right now), "Bahr" (Bryant) "papa", "ball", "bye", "boo" (book) and a few others I can't think of right now. Your vocabulary is growing more and more. We just have to learn to say our d's! :-)
• can also tell us what a monkey says. It's pretty funny to hear. We're working dog and cat sounds. haha.
• laugh all the time. If someone around you is laughing about something, you'll join in on that too.
• are very observant, AKA: nosy! 
• love clapping your hands at any moment.
• have gotten interested in books, finally. You'll bring one to me and try to climb in my lap so we can read it. So sweet.
• are very ticklish, pretty much everywhere. You have the best laugh ever, BTW.
• like to play "where's Hudson?" and chase, or be chased, around the house. 
• go non-stop from the time you wake up, until the time you fall asleep.
• have an obsession with your sound machine at the moment. I have to literally pry you off of it for your bath, which results in a meltdown.
• are showing a lot more meltdowns and fits lately. If you can't get something you want or figure something out, you get SO mad!
• dance more than ever!!
• like watching Bubble Guppies and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. The "outside song" on BG is your FAVORITE! It is pretty catchy. ;-)
• are absolutely smitten with your daddy and if he's got you, ain't nobody taking you away from him. You will hold onto him for dear life!
• are so smart. It is so neat to see you understanding things we say. You can follow directions SO well now!
• love to figure out how things work. You have a very analytical mind for a 15 month old. I love just sitting and watching you.
• hate the sand! You won't dare touch it! HA! Maybe next year.
• love bath time....hate tooth-brushing time. :)

I'm sure there are SO many more things I could say about you. You are just the absolute best thing in the world to us and we love you so much. I'm so excited it's Friday, 'cause that means it's time for a nice weekend together with daddy.

Here are a few more pictures of our 15 month old.

He really wanted the camera. 

Notice, he gets closer....

and closer.....

Such a cool dude.

Love this smile.

Doin' work!

Pasta Fake-Out

So, I decided to jump on the spaghetti squash bandwagon and give it a try. I love me some pasta, but it's loaded with so many carbs so I was eager to try a low-carb replacement for it. I had been meaning to pick a spaghetti squash up for a while now, but finally remembered to the other day when Hudson and I were at the store. I let it sit on my counter for a couple of days, because frankly, it was intimidating. Every time I'd walk in my kitchen, it'd just stare at me, intimidating me even more. I finally decided to tackle it last night for dinner. I was told it was hard to cut, but holy moly, I was not prepared for how hard it really is!! There are a few different cooking methods you can use, but I opted for the quick and easy.....pierce it, then microwave it. I used one of the sharpest knives I own and that sucker still seemed to trap it in there after every single piercing. I felt like I needed the jaws of life to retrieve my knife each time. It was craziness, and a little scary, to be honest. BUT, I did manage to pierce it several times, popped it in the microwave for about 10 minutes, and viola!

The hardest part after that was getting it open because it was so hot!(and I don't have the patience to wait for it to cool.)

Once I got it open, I thought, "OK, now what??" HA! 

I removed the seeds and "gunk" from the center (the half on the left has been done, the one of the right has not), then scraped every little bit of "spaghetti" out. And I mean ALLLLL of it. Once you're done, you're left with nothing but what looks like an eggshell.

Some of the seeds and "gunk", as I like to call it.

All of the goods.

So, I wondered what in the world to do with this stuff. They say it can be used in any dish that would normally have pasta. I didn't have any marinara, alfredo, or any other sauce to use, so I just made a simple "pasta" dish. I diced some tomatoes (using fresh tomatoes from my friends' garden), added garlic, basil, oregano, parsley, and parmesan cheese. 

It turned out pretty good, but I think I'll like it more with just some marinara/meat sauce on it. Joseph actually liked it too. I was surprised. Now, the texture is a little different and might take some getting used to for some people, but it can be done. I'll definitely try it again. It's light, healthy, versatile, and makes me feel like I'm eating a pasta dish, without all the guilt! ;-)

I always feel accomplished when I make something for the first time. It's always intimidating, but as long as you follow the correct steps and use flavors you enjoy, you can't go wrong! I hope you try it and like it, too!