Our Thanksgiving

We've had a great Thanksgiving week! For the first part, Chad's sister Emily, her husband Joey, and their girls drove the 12+ hour trip to Lubbock to visit us and we had so much fun. The girls are in love with their new cousin, who they got to meet for the first time. I think Josey liked him the best.
This picture isn't very good, but Lucy was so cute playing peek-a-boo with Ezra. He would turn his head wherever she peeked at him.
After they left our house, we made our way to my mom's house. Here's Ezra showing off his skills in his new walker. He looks so big in this toy...he loves that he is able to sit up and look around now. Plus, it's great to watch a little Aggie basketball in. Bathtime in granny's kitchen sink...Spending some time outside in the pretty weather...Can you see the resemblance between Ezra and his granny? We looked at some of her baby pictures and they are very similar. He definitely favors my side of the family at this point. Ezra's other cousins enjoyed digging in the dirt pile in granny's yard while Chad built my mom a raised bed for an herb garden. My mom got a metal detector for the big kids to find "treasure." Yesterday they found two nails and some old pipe and had a blast doing it. I think the kids are going to have a lot of fun roaming around out here. Our view from the back porch this lovely Thanksgiving evening. Now, if the Aggies could just win this football game, it would be the perfect Thanksgiving! Hope everyone else had a great holiday.

A year ago today...

And now we have an almost-4-month-old! I love looking back and knowing that we had no idea what we were getting ourselves into, but that we also had no idea how much this baby would bless our lives and teach us so much about God and his love for us. I am excited to see what the next year brings.

Exciting news

We are about to embark on yet another adventure...Chad has been hired as the new assistant director at Camp Blue Haven! We can't even begin to express how excited we are to once again be a part of the permanent staff at camp. Chad will keep his full-time job during the other 42 weeks of the year. Please keep us in your prayers as we take on this new, awesome responsibility.

I had a little impromptu photo session with Ezra today before his nap. I will be glad when he can sit up on his own because it gets hard to pose a baby that can only lay down without a bunch of props. Maybe I'm just not creative enough. I love this little half-grin and his twinkling eyes.

16 weeks

Ezra is 16 weeks old today. I got some pictures of him spending time with Chad before Chad left for work...
At 16 weeks, Ezra is laughing and smiling a lot, although you wouldn't know it from these pictures. If he sees the camera out, he gets a somber stare on his face. He is getting BIG. I'm not sure how much he weighs, but when I weighed him on our home scale the other day with me, he was over 15 pounds. So we'll see what the accurate scale says the week after next. He is now constantly rolling on his side when he is on the floor, and it's always his right side. Yesterday he'd roll to the side and then return right to his back (I took this video yesterday), and today he would roll and then just stay on his side. I kept thinking he'd roll on to his belly, but that pesky right arm wouldn't move out of the way. Sorry, I know that most of you don't care about Ezra rolling on his side, but it's interesting to me. I guess if you read this blog on a regular basis you are used to all the little details about my child's life. :)

another rolling video from Lesley Montandon on Vimeo.

In the crib

I took a couple of pictures of Ezra in his crib today because I want to remember this cute thing he does right now where he folds his hands across his chest when you go to put his pacifier in.
I took this one tonight after I put Ezra to bed. I could hear him on the monitor just talking and moving around, and then I looked at him on the monitor. He had scooted himself completely perpendicular to how I laid him down in the crib (and how he usually sleeps). A couple days ago Ezra started kicking up his legs and rolling onto his side, and this is how he scoots his body around. I just want to point out that Ezra wasn't actually asleep for either of these pictures. Even I am not interested enough in a photo op of my kid to wake him up.

Weekly weigh-in and recipe

I lost .4 pounds this week. The best thing is I didn't gain, and I ate Marble Slab.

Here is a recipe I tried yesterday that I really liked.
Broccoli with pecan brown butter I made a couple changes to this recipe. First, I roasted the broccoli in the oven at 425 for about 20 minutes with some olive oil, salt and pepper. I like broccoli much better this way than blanched or steamed. Then, I left out the red pepper flakes, mostly because I tend to overdo it when I use them so I thought it'd be best to leave them out completely.

Weekend

Barbara (Gramme) came to visit this weekend. Ezra had a great time playing and being rocked and held. She also babysat while Chad and I went out for my birthday. Thanks Barbara! Grandparents are the best. We also decided to have Barbara take a family picture of us. We put Ezra in his CBH "Future Camper" shirt, which is a 12 month size (so he could wear it next summer) and I thought would swallow him but it fit just fine. This boy is growing so fast. He is now well into 3-6 month clothes, and even outgrowing some of those, mostly the onesies because he has a long torso. I'll be interested to see what his measurements are when we go to the doctor for his 4 month checkup. Sweet, precious little boy.Also, it got really cold here last night so we had a fire while we watched a movie. That's all! Hope everyone else had a great weekend too. We are really looking forward to this coming weekend also, because Emily, Joey and the girls are coming to stay with us for a few days, and then after that, we get to go to my mom's house for Thanksgiving! I am excited.

Weekly weigh-in, recipes, 15 weeks, etc.

Ezra turned 15 weeks on Tuesday. Not much new to report except he is eating like a horse. He went from eating about 2 ounces per feeding to now as much as 5, but still eating pretty much just as often. Must be another one of the never-ending growth spurts that comes with having an infant. He is still sporadic about his sleeping habits. Some nights he'll wake up every 4 hours and some nights he'll go for 7 hour stretches. He always goes right back to sleep though after I feed him or stick his pacifier in. He is such a sweet, good-natured baby, always ready to give a smile or laugh to anyone who talks to him or pays attention to him (unless he's hungry, and then you better feed him right away or you'll be sorry). We are working on rolling over. I have a feeling he will be rolling from his tummy to his back any day now, mostly because he hates to be on his stomach.
I love those rolls on his thighs. :)

Also, I gained a half pound this past week. I have been better this week about working out. I've run 6 miles this week so far and plan to go running a couple more times, plus do the shred once or twice. I think this is the first week since I had a baby that I've gained weight.

Here are a couple recipes that I made this week. The enchiladas were a new one that I got from my friend Mitzi, and the stuffed chicken recipe is one that I've made for a couple years. I also make the honey nut chicken a lot.

Green enchiladas
8 tomatillos
2-3 jalapenos
8 oz cream of mushroom soup (I just used the whole can, which is about 10 oz)
10 oz sour cream
1 garlic clove
2 cooked, shredded chicken breasts
8 oz shredded cheddar cheese
10-12 corn tortillas

Boil the tomatillos and jalapenos in salted water until tomatillos are transluscent. Blend in food processor with soup, sour cream and garlic. Mix in chicken. Spread a little bit of the mixture on the bottom of a square or round baking dish. Layer cheese, torn up tortillas and soup mixture until they run out, ending with cheese on the top layer. Bake at 350 degrees until cheese bubbles, about 20 minutes.

Tomato basil feta-stuffed chicken breasts
6 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
6 oz. tomato basil feta cheese (I can never find this, so I blend together regular feta, sun-dried tomatoes, and basil in a food processor or just use plain feta cheese)
1/4 cup Italian bread crumbs (I use regular bread crumbs with garlic powder and Italian seasoning)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Place chicken breasts beween 2 pieces of wax paper. Gently pound chicken with flat side of meat mallet or rolling pin until about 1/4 inch thick; remove wax paper. Place 1 ounce of feta cheese in the center of each chicken breast, and fold in half.
Spread 2 tablespoons in the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Arrange chicken in the dish, and top with remaining bread crumbs.
Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear.

Here is the link to the honey nut chicken sticks. I make sweet potato fries with this. Also, I reduce the amount of grill seasoning because I think it's too salty otherwise.

Also, today's my birthday...I am 28. Chad came home from work and brought me breakfast and took care of Ezra so I could sleep late, even though he was exhausted from his shift at work. It was really nice. I keep forgetting it's my birthday. I guess that's what happens the older you get. :)

14 weeks

Ezra was 14 weeks on Tuesday. Here are some recent pictures.
Chad has been working hard on school and luckily his baby is a master proofreader.

Ezra had a playdate the other day with his buddy Aiden. Aiden is 1 month younger than Ezra.

Ezra laughs

Ezra laughs from Lesley Montandon on Vimeo.

Ezra's first haircut

We cut Ezra's hair for the first time today. It was pretty much a mullet. You know, business in front, party in the back. Only, it was really business on top, party on the sides and in the back. We weren't sure how he'd react to the clippers but he didn't really have much of a reaction at all. Here are the before and after shots and a video of Chad cutting his hair. Enjoy!

First haircut, 11/2/09 from Lesley Montandon on Vimeo.

The weekend

We had a good weekend. Chad was off so we got to spend a lot of time together as a family, and Chad's grandparents were in town so Ezra got to meet a set of his great-grandparents. Here he is with Nanny. We didn't dress Ezra up for Halloween. I did put him in this outfit that my sister bought him while I was pregnant. It says "I want candy." I thought the look on his face was appropriate.
Just a cute picture of Ezra playing with his daddy.
My handsome little boy at almost 14 weeks.In other news, we will be cutting Ezra's hair soon. You'll notice in the second-to-last picture that he is still sporting the old man 'do, with short hair on the top and longer hair around the sides. Even though he has hair on the top, it is shorter since he lost all the hair on the top when he was about 4 weeks old, so it won't be catching up. We'll just be evening it out. I'll post pictures of the "before" and "after" when we get around to cutting it.

Weekly weigh-in

I lost .2 pounds this week. Yes, that decimal is in the right spot. Long story short, I bought candy for Halloween and we had zero trick-or-treaters. I think that pretty much explains it. I am just glad I lost instead of gained. Here's to a week of better eating and more exercising.

Is it already November?

These are a few of my favorite things

I've seen a few lists of other people's favorite baby things, and I put together one of my own. These are the things we like and have used the most during Ezra's newborn months.

Fisher Price Rainforest Swing--My sister let me borrow this swing, and I love it for a few reasons--it swings sideways and front to back, it has a mobile that can move with or without music, it has 4 different sounds that can be played depending on whether the baby is sleepy or wants to play and be awake, and best of all, it plugs in. No batteries to replace!
Baby Einstein Play Mat--This is on loan from my friend Tiffany. Ezra uses this toy more than any other toy we own. I can lay him under it and he will stare at all the toys, grab them and smile for a loooong time. I have even started bringing it with me when I go out of town, because it breaks down easily and is easy to pack.
Conair Infant Sound Machine--We use this for the white noise so we don't have to tiptoe around the house when Ezra is sleeping. It has other sounds (heartbeat anyone?), but we stick with the white noise.
Summer Day/Night Video Monitor--I love this monitor. It has video and sound, and keeps me from going into Ezra's room multiple times a night whenever he makes a peep. Plus, sometimes when Ezra is asleep I miss him (dorky, I know), so I can look at my cute little sleeping baby anytime without waking him up.
Graco Snugride32 Carseat w/ Travel System--once Ezra got over his carseat aversion (which I think would have been the case with any carseat), I have grown to really like this carseat. It is also one of the highest rated in Consumer Reports. My favorite part about it is the sunshade that slides back and forth and isn't attached to the back of the carrier, if that makes sense. That way you can move it to block the sun or wind from whatever direction. It's supposed to fit up to 32 pounds or 32 inches, so we will see if we still use it that long or switch to a convertible before that. Obviously we won't be carting Ezra around in it at that point, since our arm is about to fall off as it is with that kid in his carseat.
Kolcraft Jogging Stroller--I like this stroller because Ezra can face forward or backward in it, and it also has a carseat attachment. It does the job on our walks and runs.
Kiddopotamus SwaddleMe--We used this for every nap and bedtime until about a week and a half ago. It calmed Ezra right down and he knew it was time to sleep. It kept him from flailing his arms around and scratching himself in the face and waking himself up. I didn't think swaddling was really necessary before we had a baby, but once we tried it with Ezra, it worked for us. I know it doesn't work for some babies. We have since started using the Halo Sleepsack (thanks for the suggestion, Hollie!).
Kelty Wallaby Infant Carrier--I got this for $22 at babysteals.com. I also have an Ergo, but at this point Ezra is not a huge fan of facing in and not being able to see anything when he's in a carrier. This is a lot like the Baby Bjorn, I think. It's easy to put on, comfortable, and Ezra likes it because he can look out or face in if he's sleeping. I'll still use my Ergo when he gets bigger. I think the Kelty is rated to 25 pounds, but I don't know if I'll use it when he's that big.
GroBaby Cloth Diapers--I was inspired by Stephanie to check these diapers out when I was researching cloth diapers, and I am not sorry that we decided to get them. They are great. Ezra hasn't had a single blowout, and the extra load of laundry every few days is nothing compared to the amount of laundry I'm already doing. And really, it's not gross. Basically you throw the diapers in a wetbag instead of in the trash, and then you throw the whole thing in the wash instead of the dumpster. No big deal. Even Chad doesn't mind them. I still let the grandparents use disposables. :)
Quilter's Nappies cloth wipes--I started using cloth wipes because it only makes sense with cloth diapers. I love using cloth wipes as much as I love the diapers. I just store them in a plastic wipes container with some wipes solution, and they are sooooo much better at getting the messes than disposable wipes. Also, I have started using these for bath washcloths as well.

So, there's my list. I'm sure I'll add to it as the months pass.