Tan Fat is Better than White Fat

At least that's what one of my grannies used to say!

I know, I know! Tanning is so unhealthy, but I don't go very often. Only when I've got something coming up. Every time I go to the tanning bed (which will remain nameless), I crack up because of the signs they've got up in the rooms. You would think some of this is common sense and needn't be brought up, but I guess it's obviously happened... which is why it's now on the walls of the tanning bed rooms.

This is a personal favorite of mine. I'm all for posting signs up in tanning beds warning pregnant women that it's not good, but this is the best warning I've seen! I love how they stress that your unborn baby can develop cataracts or become blind... I guess it's because they can't wear any of those protective goggles. While I don't advocate tanning when pregnant, the only harm it can do is raise your body temp if you get too hot, which can do some damage... but your unborn baby is not going to go blind! If that were the case... no baring that belly when you go to the beach!

I find this one interesting too. I've heard all the myths like don't shave because it "shaves the tan off", but this one cracks me up. I'm sure everyone wants to be exposed to the lovely smell of burnt skin and coco butter.

But this one is, by far, my favorite! Rule number 5 makes me gag and laugh at the same time. Do we really need to tell people to not use the tanning rooms as a bathroom?? Where were they going... in the trashcans? Obviously they had a problem with it because this isn't the only place where they mention the "restroom". It also cracks me up that rule number 6 has to be brought up. Does it really take that long for you to tan, that you can't wait to have a smoke?

Mr. Independent

My baby is growing up WAY too fast! Lately it seems as though he wants to do everything himself. He refuses to eat baby food or anything resembling baby food because it has to be fed to him... from a spoon. If he can't pick it up and put it in his mouth... he doesn't want it! I'm now having to send "big boy" food with him to daycare. I was sending a jar of baby food each day, but was informed by the daycare workers that when he looks at the other's kids' highchair trays and sees that they have "big people" food... he refuses to let them feed him his "baby" food. He straight up shoves the spoon away and refuses to eat it. He is the youngest in his class, so I'm sure it's really embarassing to an almost 10 month old to still be eating food from a jar :). He's also getting to where he doesn't even want mommy to hold his bottle for him. He wants to do it himself! Seriously, Baby Clay! Slow down!!! Mommy doesn't want you to grow up so fast! Next thing I know he's going to be asking for the keys to the car!

I can't even believe that it's almost 2 months until he turns 1 year old! Really?!?!? When did this happen?? I've only got 2 months to plan his big birthday bash. Mark has informed me that the first birthday needn't be a big deal... but, come on! It's his first birthday party! Don't think I won't make a big deal out of it! I've been searching out a photographer to do his 1 year pics and think I may have found someone I really like. I don't want anything frou-frou... just something simple and adorable!

And speaking of pictures... I did manage to take some really cute ones of him the other afternoon. The one thing I LOVE about our house is that we get fabulous light in our living room in the afternoons. It always makes for some good pictures.

Mesmerized by something on TV
He has a love/hate relationship with this caterpillar his great-granny gave him. He's either laughing at it or looking at it all serious- like. Sweet Baby!
His new tractor toy from Daddy. Thank goodness, it's not something he can beat my hardwood floors with (like the mini-baseball bat somebody's daddy got him not too long ago.)
What our living room looks like every afternoon. He has to pull out EVERY toy!

And this is my new favorite picture! Gotta LOVE those big brown eyes!

Father's Day Weekend Fun

This past weekend we got to go to the REALLY big city to visit my side of the family and meet my new niece!! We had a great time, but Clay ended up not feeling so great by Saturday evening. He had been playing just fine and acting normal... up until we made a quick trip to Target. He started getting a little fussy and felt really hot. I took his temp and it was 103.3!!! That's the highest temp he's every had! I almost freaked, but called the doctor and spoke with the on-call nurse and she made me feel a lot better. We gave him some tylenol, followed by some motrin 3 hours later... and after a couple rounds of that... he was back to normal! I had contemplated that maybe it was from the heat and the fact that he's teething (a lot! he's got 7 teeth coming in now!). So it was either that or a 24 hour bug... he's doing much better and back to his normal wild self!

Here are some pictures and comments from the weekend!

This is what Clay spent most of his time doing... playing with his dump truck. He LOVES it! He's also picked up on the sound a "truck" makes from his daddy. He'd sit and play so sweetly by himself making little truck noise while pushing the dump truck all over the floor.

This is what happens when the dump truck is not doing what it's supposed to be doing. Once he got it going right, he was fine. I, of course, couldn't resist getting this sad little expression on camera.

Here is Clay and his Cousin Cady playing. I love the expression on Cady's face... I don't think she's really wanting to share those blocks with Baby Clay. She eventually did give him one and all was happy.

And here's my beautiful Cady again... Look at that sweet little face! And here is the new baby of the family... Hailey! She's TINY!!!! Probably the tiniest baby I've ever held. She's close to 7 pounds, but just seems so itty bitty! She's so strong, though! She's moving that head around really good and if you put her on her stomach, she'll eventually roll herself over to her back!

Look at how HUGE that paci looks in her mouth! A very rare photo with her eyes open. She looks just like my sister did when she was a baby!

Big yawn!!

A Whole Lotta Nothin'

Nothing really interesting has been going on around here. I have been snapping a bunch of pictures, so I just need an excuse to share them :)!

We are working on the whole "weaning" process... I don't really know if you can call it "weaning" since he's not actually nursing and hasn't been for a month or so, but I still pump and give it to him in a bottle. I've gotten it down to one time a day and hope to be milk free by July! While I'm sad that I'm no longer Clay's sole provider of food, I'm also thrilled of the freedom I will get when I'm not tied to the pump! I was worried that Clay would not like formula, but he's taken to it extremely well... maybe a little too well! He LOVES it! We are also working on using a sippy cup... not going as well as I hoped, but maybe he'll pick it up soon. We've tried 2 different sippy cups and may be trying a third if he doesn't figure this one out.

Clay is also still lovin' his new car. He's figure out how to make it "go" by himself, so he's all over the place. There isn't a wall or cabinet that is safe from our little road rager!
Clay and Monte are still inseperable. Monte loves to chase Clay around in his car or while he's crawling. I'm so glad these two get along!
He's also now discovered that he can mess up mommy's pictures by going for the camera. Half of my pictures now look like this:

The other day Mark went to a baseball game and got Clay a mini bat. We're starting him early on his baseball career. He finds it hysterical to beat my hardwood floors with it. Thanks, Daddy!

And this is just a cute picture of him wearing daddy's hat:
Since Clay has turned 9 months, we've been trying all kinds of new foods. He LOVES cheese... veggie sausage, chicken nuggets, waffles, hummus and grilled cheese sandwiches. All this new stuff has caused a bit of a diaper rash (his first one ever) and I was instructed by the nurse to let him go naked - to get fresh air to it. I couldn't resist taking a picture (he's not old enough to be embarrassed by a naked butt picture - yet!).
And this weekend we finally get to see my new baby niece, Hailey! I can't wait!!! She looks just like my sister and my other niece, Cadence. She's still slightly less than 7 pounds which that is going to seem TINY compared to Baby Clay!

Just Being Goofy!

The other day I was finishing up some work and Mark had just brought Clay home from daycare. I hadn't gotten him out of his baby bucket yet and he kept doing this goofy laugh! I just HAD to get it on video!

Baby's Got a Brand New Ride!

We felt it was time to put the jumperoo to rest and move on to more "mobile" fun for Clay. While he loved the jumperoo, I think it was time to take the next step and get a walker. I researched for the best one and came across the Combi 3-in-1 walker. This think does it all! It's a walker, it's a jumper, it's a snack tray, and most of all... it gives us a break!

I ordered it from Amazon.com (I highly suggest getting it from here because I saved over $40!) and it came today. I was a little sad that I didn't get to see Baby Clay's first "ride" in his new GT since I'm out of town on business, but Mark did a great job capturing his excitment... and BOY was he excited!

Here's a picture of his new ride...

And here is Baby Clay taking his first drive...

What if...

I'm one of those people who has a hard time letting things go... when something "almost bad" happens, I always play the "what if" game. What if I had done this... what if I had done that... what if this had happened? Today was one of those days.

I'm going to first start out by saying that I know that there are people who live in my new town that read my blog and people that know what daycare my son goes to and this post is not meant to bash this daycare in any way. I know they meant no harm... this could have happened anywhere... including my own home. Baby Clay is fine... it's actually his mommy that's not doing so well. You see, we had a scare today. It may not seem major to some, but to me, a "what if" person, it's scared the ever-living crap out of me.

Today, we finally closed on our house. It's been a crazy process, but FINALLY, it's done! After we closed, we decided to run a few quick errands before we went to pick up Clay from daycare. We showed up at the daycare and went in to find Clay playing and happy as usual. I went to pick him up and as I did, one of the daycare ladies mentioned that he must be cutting some more teeth because he had been chewing on what she thought was his "tongue". I knew he was cutting 2 more top teeth so I didn't think anything of it until I handed him to Mark and saw that he was in fact "chewing" on something. I reached into his mouth and pulled out a piece of ribbon, about 2 inches long and close to a 1/2 inch wide. I about lost it... but I held it together while at the daycare. I handed it to one of the daycare workers and they were trying to figure out where it came from. We left the daycare and as soon as we hit the car, I LOST it. I couldn't believe how close my baby came to possibly swallowing and choking on a piece of ribbon! Thank God we got there when we did and noticed it when we did! Because I was so upset, we went back and talked to the daycare director and she eased my worries (slightly) and let me know that they were going to be extra careful. The ribbon had come from a toy and they had no clue how Clay had gotten it off because it was on so tight, none of the workers could get it off. I asked that they double check the other toys and make sure they are age appropriate for his class.

BUT... I can't help playing the "What If" game. What if the closing had taken longer and we got there 15 minutes later? What if he actually swallowed it and choked... would they have been able to get it out? What if...

I am worried and distraught over even taking him back, but I have to... this is something that could have happened anywhere and I have to keep telling myself that. He's going to fall... he's going to bump his head... he's all boy and I need to prepare myself for this. I just have to leave him in God's hands and know that he will take care of my baby.

9 Months Old!!!

Today Baby Clay is 9 months old! 9 months just makes him sound like he’s almost a toddler (even though he’s the size of a toddler).

I wanted to do something slightly different with his monthly birthday post, so I’ve created a questionnaire (I’m stealing your idea, Melissa). And while Baby Clay is not actually answering his own questionnaire; I feel as his mother, I am a good representative for giving his answers. Here goes…

Favorite Food: Green Bean Casserole and Sweet Potato baby food, and as of last night, Cheese (we’ve started him on “big people” food over the weekend and he’s doing quite well since the ravioli incident)

Favorite Drink: Mommy’s Milk (which, by the way, is quickly dwindling… he had his first bottle of formula last night and it broke my heart. I think it’s harder on me than it is on him – he drank that formula up like it was the last meal he was ever going to get!)

Best Friend: Monte (Clay LOVES his furry little buddy! His little face lights up whenever Monte comes in to see him.)

Favorite Toy: Dumptruck that Daddy got him – he loves it when we put a block in the dump bed and dump it out. He laughs hysterically!

Favorite TV Show: Anything with Elmo on it or the Wonder Pets

Favorite Song: the Apple Bottom Jeans song by Flo Rida (Ok, so I made that up… but he does like to dance to this song.)

Favorite Activity: Chasing and being chased by Monte and he LOVES his bath time! He’d stay in the bathtub forever.

Weight: 22.7 pounds (He hasn’t gained anything since last month! I think all that crawling, jumping and pulling up has slimmed him down a little! And we’re still squishing his big butt into the baby bucket! It’s rated up to 22 pounds and we’re getting every last bit of use out of it!)

New things this month: Pulling up to standing (He pulls up on EVERYTHING! He can even balance on his own a little and cruises while holding onto anything. ); Waves and says Bye-Bye; Has 4 teeth and I think he’s cutting some more; Love playing Peek-a-Boo and tug-of-war with Monte and his hippo toy; Loves to swing and play in the sand at daycare; Loves to repeat sounds we make – he’s even said Elmo a couple of times!

I can’t wait to see what new and exciting things he does this month! Everyday it’s something new! And now I’ll leave you with some cute pictures we took the other day!

(Please excuse the grainy pictures. My camera was not cooperating the day I took these.)

Welcome Baby Hailey!!!

I've got a new niece!!! She was due by scheduled c-section June 18th, but decided she was tired of being all cooped up and wanted to surprise us with an early appearance last night! My sister had multiple contractions really close together and then her water broke yesterday evening and off to the hospital they went! She was born by c-section last night at 10:43 and weighed 7 lbs and was 18 3/4 inches long (I'm not positive about the 3/4 part). Mommy and baby are doing great! She's gorgeous and has red hair! I'm so sad I was not able to be there and this couldn't have been the worst week for her to come! I've got my customer conference with work this week and do not think we'll be able to make it until Friday. It might work out better because they will be home from the hospital and I'll probably get to spend more time with her! Can't wait to meet her!!!

And here is a picture I stole from my brother-in-law's facebook. (I'm sure I'll have a plethora of pictures to show off when I go see her!)

Hailey Isabelle Burge

Born: June 6

Weight: 7 lbs

(Yes, us Smith girls birth some big babies! She looks way bigger than 7 pounds!!)

Picky Eater!

Baby Clay is quickly creeping up on the big 9 months and I decided to do a little research on what a 9 month old can and can’t eat. Clay’s pediatrician told me to do 2 meals of level 2 baby food (along with his milk) from 6 months to 9 months… and then 9 months was when he got to eat level 3 foods and have 3 meals a day. I just assumed Clay was tired of eating baby food from a jar, so I surfed the internet to see if I could find some variety for him. I found that he can pretty much eat anything we eat, just as long as it’s cut up into small bites and it’s not one of those foods that are a cause of allergies. I was so excited and just knew that he was going to LOVE his new food experience. I decided last night was the night to start… and what better thing to start with than Cheese Ravioli!!

Anyways… I got it all prepared, cut it into bite-sized pieces, stripped Clay down to his diaper (I knew this was going to be messy), and was so excited to give him his first bite (camera ready, Mark in there to witness this new milestone)! AND… it didn’t go too well. In fact, as soon as he smelled it, he turned his little face away and started gagging. Seriously… so dramatic! Don’t know where he gets that from… Well, I thought he just doesn’t know what he’s missing, so I slipped a little in his mouth real quick… and it came right back out… everywhere. After a few more tries, I gave up! We went back to the yucky ole’ baby food in a jar – which, by the way, he ate up like he’d hadn’t eaten in days! My excitement was crushed… I was planning on making him pancakes and grilled cheese sandwiches… and now, it’s back to mushy baby food in a jar. I’ll keep trying… maybe he just doesn’t care for ravioli yet!

I do have a few “before” pictures of him. I didn’t get any during or after pictures because it was such a traumatizing experience (mainly for me).

See! He's all excited and ready to eat his new food!

Baby Clay's obvious disgust for Ravioli (and this is just from the smell)

I’d also like to add, that I hurt in places that I didn’t know was possible from the 30 Day Shred. Is it ok for my lungs to be sore?? I have made it a whole 5 DAYS!!! And, on top of that, I’ve made it a whole 5 days without Dr. Pepper (although, I WILL be having one either today or tomorrow – or maybe both since I did allow myself 2 Dr. P’s a week). I still have only lost ½ a pound, but I’m contributing the slow weight loss to excess bloating (due to inhaling copious amounts of water) and the fact that I’m sure I’m building all kinds of muscle (and muscle weighs more than fat).

This weekend we are going to the big city to look at furniture, buy me some work shoes (because I do not think they’d find flip flops appropriate at our customer conference next week), and hopefully eat at Moe’s (with a stop at Starbuck’s, I’m sure). Ya’ll have a great weekend!!!

Day 3 of the 30 Day Dread!

So I decided I needed to do something about my post-preggo buddha belly, and June 1st seemed like the best time to start. I have this weird OCD think about having to start something on the first of the month or on a Monday... and lucky for me, June 1st was on a Monday, so it was obviously fate! Through much research, I decided to try my hand at Jillian Micheals' 30 Day Shred. Now we have a perfectly good elliptical machine sitting in our office here at the house, but I've gotten a little bored with that and felt like a needed a challenge. For those of you who don't know Jillian Micheals, she's one of the trainers on Biggest Loser. I don't watch that show (except for the occaisional Season Finale - just to see the winner), but I've heard that she's pretty tough... and BOY is she! This video has 3 workouts... all are 20 minutes long and do 3 sets. Each set has 3 minutes of strength, 2 minutes of cardio, and 1 minute of abs. She encourages you to start with level 1, and being the avid exerciser that I am, I was pretty sure I could start with Level 2, but I decided to start with Level 1 - just to see how in-shape I was. Ummmmmm... let's just say, starting at Level 1, was the best decision I've ever made! Holy cow! It was the worst 20 minutes of my life. And Jillian rubbing the fact that she has 400 pound people doing jumping jacks while I'm struggling and out of breath doesn't help much either.

So now I'm on day 3. Yep... I've made it 3 whole days! And in addition to this 30 Day Shred Dread, I've given up Dr. Pepper. ** Let's take a moment of silence, please. ** I think that's been harder than getting up at 5:15 to workout! I did tell myself that I could have 2 Dr. Peppers a week, so I'm saving them for a special occaision.

Well... am I seeing any progress?? I was a little worried about whether or not I was going to stick with it when I got on the Wii Fit yesterday and had gained a little from Monday. What?!?! I'm not supposed to do that when I'm working out and not drinking Dr. Pepper. (Although the half a box of Cheez-it's probably didn't help - however, they were Reduced Fat.) I was a little worried about weighing myself this morning... I had told myself that if I gained more weight, I was definitely drinking a Dr. Pepper today... and to my surprise, I had lost 1/2 a pound! Woo Hoo! So maybe it is working.

I'm thinking that maybe if I blog about it, it will force me to stick with it (hmm... maybe I need to start blogging about flossing as well). And feel free to send me an occaisional email asking me how I'm doing with it :)!

Sorry, no pictures of Baby Clay today. I did take some cute ones yesterday, but I'm saving them for his 9 month blog! Oh, and no "before" picture of me either... just take my word for it... the belly is not pretty (but it needs to be in 30 days - I have to get into a bathing suit for 4th of July weekend! I haven't been in a bathing suit in front of people in like 2 years!!!)

How Much Wood Could a Woodchuck Chuck...

Apparently a whole lot if that Woodchuck is named Baby Clay...

Here's an even closer look...

Yes, folks, that is Baby Clay's nice crib. It obviously tastes really good. Don't know if I've mentioned this, but Clay is getting his 2 top teeth in... add that to the 2 bottom teeth he has and you get "crib disaster"! Looks like we're going to be getting these right away...


And here is the little crib lizard showing off his destructive bite (he looks like what mommy felt when she saw the crib - no wonder he was being so quiet up there during naptime)...

But, of course, how can you be mad at this sweet little angel...

And here are a couple of other funny faces...