Oh, the little things

There are still days where I sit back & ask myself "Am I really a mom?" I just can't believe it. It's all such a miracle to me. Every time a woman gets pregnant- it's a miracle. I'm such a sucker for babies. It's crazy to think that Rylee used to be a little peanut in my stomach. She was so feisty. Always kicking me in the ribs & punching me back if I made her move in my tummy. I can't believe now that she's almost 17 months , she has turned into such a little rascal. She's a handful that's for sure, but she wouldn't be mine if she wasn't. 

Her hair is ALWAYS in her face now because she refuses to let me put any type of clippie, hair bow/tie in her hair. She just yanks it out & hands it to me.

She does what she wants, when she wants & how she wants.

And after she gets her way? 

She's such a happy clam. 

Who wouldn't be?

I love this girl to pieces. 

How can you love someone else this much?

Pinterest meals

I'm slacking in the cooking meals department lately..trying to get back in the swing of things. It's crazy when life is so hectic you forget to cook.

I made this Pinterest inspired Ham sandwich the other day. Let me just say YUM. This has definitely been the best recipe I've came across on this site. If you love hawaiian swet rolls & ham definitely give this a try! I hate mustard, but this was SO GOOD! Ha ha..I'm craving it again!

I've been really struggling with different foods to feed Rylee & when I came across these mini corndogs I knew I had to do it! She loved them! And they were so good. I ate a lot too! I used turkey dogs instead of that processed crap.

Such a crappy pic..sorry! 

When I saw this pizza casserole I knew I had to make it. I'm not a big fan of pepperonis, but my hubby loves them. This was such a quick & easy meal and I had everything already in my pantry! Rylee LOVED this. She was demanding more.
I forgot to take a pic the 1st time..ha ha..so you can see where we dug in. ;)

Green beans, bacon, brown sugar, soy sauce & butter=amazingness ( I know this isn't a word. ) These were so good & bite size so it's perfect for just shoving the whole thing in your mouth at once! Go get the recipe here and cook your little hearts out!

Questions answered

I just realized I never answered the questions that everyone asked during the HANA giveaway. 

OOPS!

The first question came from The life of baby B: how do you keep your hair near your scalp so tame! i always have fly aways and static and can't get rid of it! I've always been told my hair stylists that you should NOT flat iron your hair near your scalp. You should start about 2 inches away. Also, I use a comb while flat ironing and it seems to help. Try to use a light hair spray and that works. I've always used this oil that you put in after you're done with styling and it tames everything.

2) This came from Baby P Makes Three: Who was your maid of honor in your wedding? I didn't have a maid of honor. All the girls in my wedding, we have been friends for a long time & I couldn't "pick" one single person. I didn't want anyone to feel left out. We all had/have different friendships & we all connect on a different level. 

3) From Starving, Insatiable..: do you miss Coca-Cola? BAHAHAHAHA. Jen & I have known each other for a while & she knows the answer to this question..everyone should! NO I DO NOT MISS COCA-COLA! I don't miss going to work at 9am, I don't miss sitting at a desk all day, I don't miss having to take a crap in the nasty public restroom (if I had to go & just couldn't hold it!) I love being at home with my sweet baby all day long, every day!

4) On the front porch looking in..: What is your favorite kitchen utensil? I would have to say my new Rachael Ray pots & pans set that I received for Christmas! LOVE THEM! They make cooking a bit more fun!  

5) Fit, Fierce & Fabulous What is your favorite book you've read? Right now I'm reading the Jaycee Dugard story & I'm really into it! I'm pretty sure there are other books I've read & fell in love with, but honestly I can't think of them! I never have time for reading anymore. :/

6) Two Little Miracles: What does your night look like after rylee goes to bed? Before Jeremy was on this new, whacked out schedule we normally watched TV on the couch/in the bed and went to sleep around 10pm. Now? I feel like some sort of night owl. It's weird. Jeremy goes to bed at 8 with Rylee since he gets up at 3:30am to head to work. I watch tv/blog/catch up on everything else until 11pm or so. I try to be in bed by 11, but sometimes it's later.. :/ 

Thanks for all the question! This was fun!

Weekend recap

Jeremy was out of town last week so Rylee & I had lots & lots of girl time. 

We played in the yard & she kept pointing to the birds in the sky. I love her. 

And this is her new hair style..1 piggy in & 1 out. I don't know why she always pulls 1 side out, but leaves the other in.

I always wonder what this sweet little mind is up to..

Saturday we played around with some shirts & had a fun day with nana. If you're interested in buying any 'bling shirts' let me know. (shameless plug) I can create any type of design/colors.

Sunday daddy was finally home & we had to go to a lame family reunion. It actually wasn't so bad. Rylee LOVED sitting on the tractor.

And playing with their 2 boxers. They were a little more rough than Diesel so she wasn't used to it, but they loved licking her all over. It was mighty cute.

I had to be mama bear and stand by her because they would knock her down in .2 seconds.

P.S. Where in the H did my boobies go?!

We had a few moments of this..

 "Mommy..give me more food"

 and this is her "mommy, i said now!!!!"

How was your weekend?!

Struttin' that stuff.

My girl...

well..

she thinks she is all that and a bag of chips.

Let me tell you. 

She has this attitude that came straight from her mama.

When she walks out of the door she demands my cell phone & keys. 

And if I don't give them to her?

She throws a tantrum. 

And she must wear her glasses.
I'm sure she thinks she's the coolest toddler on the planet.

Strut your stuff baby.

 And somehow she just knows it's time to get in the truck 

because then she takes off her glasses.

And we decided to play with her hair..ADORBS. 

I love it.

 Eeeek...this may be our new hairstyle. :)

Daddy coming home part 2

I posted last week pictures when Daddy comes home

and how she gets SO excited.

Well, here is a video for proof. 

Not the greatest, but you get the point.

Valentine's Day

We hope everyone had a great Valentine's Day!!

Jeremy & I told each other we wouldn't buy gifts this year, but do I listen? No.

He normally doesn't either, but did this year. I was proud.

I decided to get him this GoPro Camera. 

His reaction?

This is on our way to the park for Family day. 

He's a NERD.

This camera is actually pretty bad ass. It has a fish eye lens on it & takes AWESOME pictures & video. Now I want a fish eye lens for my camera! 

I woke up to beautiful hot pink roses, candy & a sweet, sweet card.

And of course Rylee got a few goodies, too!

Pinterest inspired

A while back I came across this pinterest project & knew it was meant for us. Rylee has quite a few of stuffed animals & I'm sure she will only get more as she gets older & they are just laying around my house..EVERYWHERE. 

Time to declutter! 

I didn't want it as big because we really have no room for any other type of big object in this house. (Time to upgrade square footage, Jeremy.) 

I knew I wanted to paint it & have it say 'Rylee's Zoo'.

I showed the picture to my awesome hubby and this is what he did:

(phone pics- beware)

 So, Rylee screamed until we let her in it. Full on temper tantrum.

So, my hubby is pretty awesome. He did all the wood work/drilling & I painted. He carved the 'Rylee's Zoo' in the wood so it looks really great. I love it! I think Rylee approved of it, too! 

Now, what else can I bribe him to do?! ;)

WINNER!

Happy Valentine's Day from Rylee & I :)

Yes, I realize this says "2011" I was lazy and didn't feel like changing it. :P

Here is the winner of the Missiko giveaway:

 Melissa at The mommyhood chronicles.
You have 24 hours to contact me. :)
dnsmith09 @ gmail.com 
thanks!!!!! 

Our weekend

We were going to hit up the zoo this past weekend with Jen, but I'm pretty sure all signs are pointing her away from there. We were going to go last weekend & then I felt like death & this weekend it was in the 50s for the high! That's like FREEZING to us Floridians!

She loved looking at all the fishies!

I decided to paint her toes again. She loves it! I went to get the nail polish and she screamed at me until I painted them. What a good baby. I can't wait until we get pedicures together. :)

Ta da!

She has those long monkey toes like her mama :)

Can you move like this?

Any time I turn on the TV and she hears music she goes nuts.

Enjoy! :)

Aren't her moves sweet? I wish I could dance like this. :)

Our love story

1. How long have you and your significant other been together?

We've been dating since April 2007.

2. How did you meet? {What's your "love" story?}

He was definitely the 'creep' that came into my work & sat there for hours & hours. (I worked in a restaurant at the time) And ever since that day it's been history. 

 In 2007

3. If married, how long have you been married? If not, is this the guy you hope to marry? {do tell}

 We have been married since November 7th, 2009.

4. If you are married, where did you get married at? Big or small wedding? If not, where would you like to get married? And will it be big or small?

We were married in Lakeland, Fl in a beautiful church & had the reception at an outside venue. Our wedding was about 120 guests. 

5. Do you have any nick-names that you call one another? Do share!

Not really..'babe' or in my phone he's 'lovey dovey'. Corny, I know.

6. Name 3 things you love most about your honey.

 He's caring, an AWESOME dad & patient.

7. Tell us how he proposed? Or your ideal proposal?

We went to dinner at our favorite restaurant, Malio's,  and he told me to get dressed up. He proposed before our dinner came. I knew all about it and knew it was coming. He did surprise me with meeting up with friends for drinks afterwards though!

Date is wrong. :)

8. Is he a flowers and teddy bear kind of guy for v-day, or strawberries, champagne, and rose petals?

He's definitely more of a flowers type of guy.

9. Are you a sunset dinner on the beach kind of girl, or pop a movie in and relax on the couch?

I like both. I'm definitely a hopeless romantic, but I love watching movies on the couch too.

 

10. Tell us one thing you'd like to do with your significant one day. If you could do anything? Go anywhere?

 Go back to St. Lucia. It was amazing. We will go back. Maybe for our 5 or 10 year anniversary. I'd love to go to Fiji, too. 

11. Tell us what you plan on doing on this Valentine's Day.

Well, we both work & I have class. 

I will see him a total of about 45 minutes so probably not much. :P

12. Are you asking for anything this Valentine's day?

I always ask for things, I'll admit it. 

There's always something I want, 

but this year we are remodeling our bathroom so that's our big 'gift'.

 

13. Give us one piece of advice of keeping a relationship strong and full of love.

Take time for yourselves- as a couple. 

This gets even harder when kids come in the picture, but always remember that. 

14. Show us a picture of what love means to you.

Happy 16 Months!

16 months..a little late.

It always sneaks up on me and I'm never ready with an update! 

Words you can say: Ma-ma, pa-pa, "Da" aka Diesel, bye bye, "ba" aka ball.

Your 'new' thing: Any time you see a fan and it's not on you always point to it, look at me & say "dat"- you're probably wondering why it's not on since we always have the fans on. 

Any time you see a bird flying you always point to it now.

You always have to stuff your mouth full of food & I mean full. I don't know why, but you think every time daddy comes near you he's going to steal it, so you hurry and eat it!

Food: You eat ALL the time, constantly, 24/7. You refuse to eat meat (even if it's the shredded-up-to- pieces-type- you will pull it out of your mouth.) However, I did learn that you love Turkey Dogs! You eat those right up & you did tear up a piece of baked Chicken I made the other night. Slowly, but surely you may turn into a meat loving person like us. :) 

Milk: We are in the process of weaning you from the bottles. We're down to 1 bottle a day & that is at bed time (which will be the hardest.) I should have just went straight from nursing to a sippy, but you refused. You refuse milk out of a sippy & won't open your mouth to drink it, but I'm hoping you will learn it tastes the same as in the bottle. Right now you're only drinking 8oz of milk a day and that's at bed time. 

You're learning to run! I'm not ready for this, but obviously you are! When you get ahead of yourself & start to run you get so excited- adorable. 

You still love to lay on mama & I love it too!

OH! & your hair?! It's getting beyond curly. I love it! You'll probably grow up & hate it like I did/do, but it's SO CUTE! 

You sleep 10-11 hours at night. Your down to mainly 1 nap a day which is about 1-1.5 hours. Sometimes you take a quick 30 minute afternoon nap, but not all the time.

Teeth: you now have 8 teeth! The other day you were in my lap and I saw 2 white sparkles in the back of your mouth & come to find out you cut 2 back top teeth & I didn't even know it! So, now you have your top 4 front teeth, 2 bottom front teeth & 2 back top teeth! I sort of miss my gummy baby, but you do look cute with teeth, too. :)

On a side note: your Echo results came back & everything is normal! woohoo! Just what we wanted to hear! :)

I love you, baby girl & am so proud of the little person you're becoming.

Now go enter my giveaway!