Andreas has always been a free spirit trying to gain as much independence as he can as fast as he can. He unfortunately hasn't figured out crawling yet, but ever the picture of ingenuity, has developed his own back scoot. Why flip and be on your belly when you can get to wherever you need to go while lying comfortably on your back?
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Sunday, April 18, 2010
A Second Tooth, the First Disease, and Some Good Recipes
Andreas had his first cold this week (caught from my second round with my cold). He really didn't fuss too much -- he is such a happy little trooper! But he is mostly over it now and back to normal. Except his sleep schedule, which we are working on. We decided to buy a jumperoo and I have to say that I highly recommend them. It took him about 10 minutes to start jumping all over the place. I told Saul that we just need a little Riverdance music and he will fit right in. Someday I will make a music video of it -- I'm pretty sure it will go viral on Youtube.
When I took this picture I told Saul that you don't have to smile in all the pictures. If this is the result, I may have to change my policy....
I hate this picture of me, but there are so few of Andreas and I together that I had to post this one. I'll try to get a better one in the future.
Playing with his new Jumperoo:
The appearance of the 2nd tooth (you have to look close):
Here he is playing superman with Daddy. The funny thing is that he will keep himself perfectly straight when you lift him up like this, which takes a lot of muscles.
Saul never ceases to amaze me with his hidden skills. When we first met, he was not able to cook toast. Now he is capable of some pretty amazing things. Every few days when I come home from work he has whipped up some new recipe. He mostly sticks to the Better Homes and Gardens cookbook because he says it is pretty easy, and I have to say, the dishes have been really good. A couple that he has made include lemon-mustard chicken, greek-style pork, and a few others. I wanted to list a few of the best recipes here (next time I'll make sure to take pictures):
Here is the recipe he made for Crispy Oven-Fried Fish (the dill makes all the difference):
1 lb tilapia
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup flour
1/3 cup bread crumbs (he may have used Panko crumbs)
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp dill
1/8 tsp pepper
2 Tbsp melted butter/margarine
Thaw fish if frozen (I recommend just getting a whole bunch fresh from Sam's Club or Costco). Rinse fish and pat dry with paper towels. Place milk in a shallow dish. Place flour in another shallow dish. In a third shallow dish combine bread crumbs, cheese, dill, and pepper. Toss with melted butter/margarine. Dip each piece of fish in the milk, then flour. Dip again in the milk, then in the crumb mixture to coat all slides. Place fish on a greased baking sheet. Bake uncovered in a 450 degree oven for 6 to 9 minutes or till fish flakes easily with a fork.
*****************************************************
Ginger-Glazed Pork Chops
4 pork loin chops **also would probably be good with chicken
1/4 cup honey
2 Tbsp soy sauce
2 Tbsp sliced green onion
1/2 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp cornstarch
1 clove garlic, minced
Hot cooked rice
Trim fat from meat and place chops on the unheated rack of a broiler pan. Broil 4 inches from heat for 8 to 10 minutes or till no pink remains and juices run clear, turning once. Transfer to a platter. Meanwhile, for glaze, in a saucepan combine honey, soy sauce, green onion, ginger, cornstarch, and garlic. Cook and stir till thickened and bubbly (make sure to stir a lot and keep an eye on it so it won't thicken too much or burn). Cook and stir 2 minutes more. Spoon over chops and serve with rice.
When I took this picture I told Saul that you don't have to smile in all the pictures. If this is the result, I may have to change my policy....
I hate this picture of me, but there are so few of Andreas and I together that I had to post this one. I'll try to get a better one in the future.
Playing with his new Jumperoo:
The appearance of the 2nd tooth (you have to look close):
Here he is playing superman with Daddy. The funny thing is that he will keep himself perfectly straight when you lift him up like this, which takes a lot of muscles.
Saul never ceases to amaze me with his hidden skills. When we first met, he was not able to cook toast. Now he is capable of some pretty amazing things. Every few days when I come home from work he has whipped up some new recipe. He mostly sticks to the Better Homes and Gardens cookbook because he says it is pretty easy, and I have to say, the dishes have been really good. A couple that he has made include lemon-mustard chicken, greek-style pork, and a few others. I wanted to list a few of the best recipes here (next time I'll make sure to take pictures):Here is the recipe he made for Crispy Oven-Fried Fish (the dill makes all the difference):
1 lb tilapia
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup flour
1/3 cup bread crumbs (he may have used Panko crumbs)
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp dill
1/8 tsp pepper
2 Tbsp melted butter/margarine
Thaw fish if frozen (I recommend just getting a whole bunch fresh from Sam's Club or Costco). Rinse fish and pat dry with paper towels. Place milk in a shallow dish. Place flour in another shallow dish. In a third shallow dish combine bread crumbs, cheese, dill, and pepper. Toss with melted butter/margarine. Dip each piece of fish in the milk, then flour. Dip again in the milk, then in the crumb mixture to coat all slides. Place fish on a greased baking sheet. Bake uncovered in a 450 degree oven for 6 to 9 minutes or till fish flakes easily with a fork.
*****************************************************
Ginger-Glazed Pork Chops
4 pork loin chops **also would probably be good with chicken
1/4 cup honey
2 Tbsp soy sauce
2 Tbsp sliced green onion
1/2 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp cornstarch
1 clove garlic, minced
Hot cooked rice
Trim fat from meat and place chops on the unheated rack of a broiler pan. Broil 4 inches from heat for 8 to 10 minutes or till no pink remains and juices run clear, turning once. Transfer to a platter. Meanwhile, for glaze, in a saucepan combine honey, soy sauce, green onion, ginger, cornstarch, and garlic. Cook and stir till thickened and bubbly (make sure to stir a lot and keep an eye on it so it won't thicken too much or burn). Cook and stir 2 minutes more. Spoon over chops and serve with rice.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Easter, Helmets, Teeth, and Other News
Andreas was a little fussy yesterday. He has been ultra drooly for about a month. His mouth is a magnet and everything MUST go straight in. Saul said he thought he felt something in his mouth, but this was coming from the person who thinks the baby should be doing chores by age 2 -- he's delusional. We decided to try to wrestle him down to feel for teeth, and sure enough, there it was! The bottom left tooth coming in. It has broken the surface but just barely.
Here are a few shots of the new tooth (if you look really close). Saul was the photographer and I was the baby wrangler, so they are a bit blurry.
We didn't do any Easter Egg hunts this year, so nothing too fancy at our house for Easter. Sam and Tiffany had us over for an Easter feast Sunday. Tiffany (as always) did everything up so nice we felt like royalty. Unfortunately I forgot to take any pictures of the table-scape, so make sure to check out her blog for those pictures. I was feeling a little under the weather, but recovered just in time to be able to stuff my face with such delights as Sam's masterful twice-baked potatoes, beef brisket, pistachio jello "salad", rolls, green salad -- the works! We didn't have much time to watch our usual Ten Commandments (luckily we had caught most of it on TV the night before), but there is always next year!
Here is Andreas and Zoe at Easter:
Here are some pictures from Andreas's first Easter:
He is able to hold onto his feet now -- which of course he wants to get into his mouth as soon as possible but hasn't reached that level of dexterity yet. He usually manages to pull his socks far enough to do the job though.
In other news, the fruit trees in our yard are doing quite well. Our Satsuma orange has a few flowers and new foliage. Our Moro Blood Orange tree has new growth but no flowers to speak of. Our Red Skin peach tree has oodles of fruit on it. they are about the size of half dollars, so we are really excited:
Here is our Meyer Lemon tree -- so many flower buds it barely can hold them all. They aren't blooming completely yet though, so we are excited to see them all in full force. But we should be getting plenty of lemons! In the picture you can see all of the little purple pre-flowers:
And here is one last picture of Andreas with his new glo-worm. It sings lullabies, and is usually good for entertaining him for 15 seconds.
The other news is that Andreas may have to get a helmet to fix his slightly misshapen head -- the doctor says he is borderline, so we should be able to tell by the end of April if it is going to be required. Saul and I are really trying to keep him sitting/standing up because who really wants a helmet? NOBODY! Also, we found out he is going to need surgery to fix an undescended testicle next month. A lot of little things to fix, but we feel blessed that at least everything has been minor rather than major issues and we know that Heavenly Father is watching over us.
Here are a few shots of the new tooth (if you look really close). Saul was the photographer and I was the baby wrangler, so they are a bit blurry.
We didn't do any Easter Egg hunts this year, so nothing too fancy at our house for Easter. Sam and Tiffany had us over for an Easter feast Sunday. Tiffany (as always) did everything up so nice we felt like royalty. Unfortunately I forgot to take any pictures of the table-scape, so make sure to check out her blog for those pictures. I was feeling a little under the weather, but recovered just in time to be able to stuff my face with such delights as Sam's masterful twice-baked potatoes, beef brisket, pistachio jello "salad", rolls, green salad -- the works! We didn't have much time to watch our usual Ten Commandments (luckily we had caught most of it on TV the night before), but there is always next year!Here is Andreas and Zoe at Easter:
Here are some pictures from Andreas's first Easter:
He is able to hold onto his feet now -- which of course he wants to get into his mouth as soon as possible but hasn't reached that level of dexterity yet. He usually manages to pull his socks far enough to do the job though.
In other news, the fruit trees in our yard are doing quite well. Our Satsuma orange has a few flowers and new foliage. Our Moro Blood Orange tree has new growth but no flowers to speak of. Our Red Skin peach tree has oodles of fruit on it. they are about the size of half dollars, so we are really excited:
Here is our Meyer Lemon tree -- so many flower buds it barely can hold them all. They aren't blooming completely yet though, so we are excited to see them all in full force. But we should be getting plenty of lemons! In the picture you can see all of the little purple pre-flowers:
And here is one last picture of Andreas with his new glo-worm. It sings lullabies, and is usually good for entertaining him for 15 seconds.
The other news is that Andreas may have to get a helmet to fix his slightly misshapen head -- the doctor says he is borderline, so we should be able to tell by the end of April if it is going to be required. Saul and I are really trying to keep him sitting/standing up because who really wants a helmet? NOBODY! Also, we found out he is going to need surgery to fix an undescended testicle next month. A lot of little things to fix, but we feel blessed that at least everything has been minor rather than major issues and we know that Heavenly Father is watching over us.
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times....
The Best:
Saturday night Andreas slept from 7:30pm to 6:30am without waking. Saul and I couldn't believe it and had to keep checking to make sure he hadn't been kidnapped. When we realized what had happened we thanked our lucky stars and started to remember what normal life felt like. We could get used to this!!!
The Worst:
Monday night 7:30pm - we put Andreas to bed at the usual time
9:30 - Saul and I go to bed (on time for the first time in a while)
11:30pm - Andreas wakes up. We feed him and put him back to bed.
1:00am - Andreas wakes up again (very unusual). We let him put himself back to sleep.
3:00am - Sam calls and says that Tiffany needs to go to the emergency room and doesn't provide many details. Saul gets up and goes over to their house to babysit Zoe (who is still sleeping).
3:05-3:30am - I lay in bed trying to get back to sleep but awaiting text messages from Saul on what exactly is going on with Tiffany. Turns out she had too much calcium and was feeling pretty bad. Sam took her to the hospital and she was admitted. After the news, I drift back to sleep.
5:00am - Andreas wakes up again. I feed him again and put him back to bed -- he was drifting off in the middle of the feeding anyway. My alarm is set to go off in 10 minutes for work, so I get up and login to my work computer. I rearrange my work schedule so that I can work from home for the day and go into the office Wednesday.
8:00am - Andreas wakes up again (this time for good). Saul calls and says that someone from the ward is going to help out with Zoe so he will be able to watch Andreas at 8:15am.
Needless to say it was a bit rough working for the rest of the day. I may be starting to come down with a cold on top of it all.
But, there it is! You just never know what each day is going to bring. So it is true -- the good isn't permanent and the bad isn't permanent. But it sure is unpredictable!
On a side note, Andreas turned 5 months this weekend and has been rolling over on a fairly regular basis -- front to back and back to front. He also pushes off of the ground when he is on his back, so it is kind of like a reverse crawl. Won't be long until he is mobile!
This one looks like Andreas is taking his own picture. He's advanced, but not quite to that point yet....
Here we caught him mid-roll
Saturday night Andreas slept from 7:30pm to 6:30am without waking. Saul and I couldn't believe it and had to keep checking to make sure he hadn't been kidnapped. When we realized what had happened we thanked our lucky stars and started to remember what normal life felt like. We could get used to this!!!
The Worst:
Monday night 7:30pm - we put Andreas to bed at the usual time
9:30 - Saul and I go to bed (on time for the first time in a while)
11:30pm - Andreas wakes up. We feed him and put him back to bed.
1:00am - Andreas wakes up again (very unusual). We let him put himself back to sleep.
3:00am - Sam calls and says that Tiffany needs to go to the emergency room and doesn't provide many details. Saul gets up and goes over to their house to babysit Zoe (who is still sleeping).
3:05-3:30am - I lay in bed trying to get back to sleep but awaiting text messages from Saul on what exactly is going on with Tiffany. Turns out she had too much calcium and was feeling pretty bad. Sam took her to the hospital and she was admitted. After the news, I drift back to sleep.
5:00am - Andreas wakes up again. I feed him again and put him back to bed -- he was drifting off in the middle of the feeding anyway. My alarm is set to go off in 10 minutes for work, so I get up and login to my work computer. I rearrange my work schedule so that I can work from home for the day and go into the office Wednesday.
8:00am - Andreas wakes up again (this time for good). Saul calls and says that someone from the ward is going to help out with Zoe so he will be able to watch Andreas at 8:15am.
Needless to say it was a bit rough working for the rest of the day. I may be starting to come down with a cold on top of it all.
But, there it is! You just never know what each day is going to bring. So it is true -- the good isn't permanent and the bad isn't permanent. But it sure is unpredictable!
On a side note, Andreas turned 5 months this weekend and has been rolling over on a fairly regular basis -- front to back and back to front. He also pushes off of the ground when he is on his back, so it is kind of like a reverse crawl. Won't be long until he is mobile!
This one looks like Andreas is taking his own picture. He's advanced, but not quite to that point yet....
Here we caught him mid-roll
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
First Taste of Cereal
Andreas had his first taste of cereal on Saturday March 20. He liked it pretty well, but as usual wanted his hands to be a part of the action. He is such a good eater!
New Moon Madness
Since New Moon was released on dvd at midnight on March 20, Erika was in town, and Tiffany had not yet had her surgery, the planets aligned for our New Moon extravaganza. We even stood in line at Walmart at midnight and rewarded ourselves with Twilight T-shirts! Tiffany's blog has a lot more pictures, but here are a few from my camera.
Toasting Edward with their Vampire juice:
Vampire Balls (as Saul called them) or Vampire Bites (as I called them):
Toasting Edward with their Vampire juice:
Vampire Balls (as Saul called them) or Vampire Bites (as I called them):
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