Peanut, Butter, and Bread Sandwiches

Brush your teeth!

2011-04-12T23:03:00.001-05:00

Open wide!

I was asked to do an article for the Simpson County newspaper, so I decided to do one on children's dental health. So, I needed a model. Jason was more than happy to oblige!

Some things I don't want to forget...

2011-02-23T20:28:00.000-06:00

Jason has been doing some silly and sweet things recently, and I'm afraid I will forget them if I don't write them down.

- He loves to walk around with a blanket (which he calls Bah-Bah) over his head, pull it off, and yell "Pee-pie!"

- He calls oranges "rahr-raaange" and bananas "bah-lither-lithers". I don't understand the banana thing, since he can say ba and nana quite well. It is really cute, and Justin and I have found ourselves calling them bahlitherlithers too.

- The dogs are "pah-pees" and Butter is still "Bah". She's been called that since Jason first started talking.

- Jason loves to blow kisses at everyone. It's so cute.

- When he wants milk, he says "malll-kuh". And if you don't get him milk, he will say "mall-kuh-kuh-kuh". He also calls all drinks milk, but he does know how to say juice.

- Yes is pronounced "yesh" and please is "peas".

- He has busted his chin several times, so when he's pointing out the features of the face, he points to his chin and says "ouch".

- Ear is "ee-yur".

- He refuses to say nose. He can name everything on the face, but he will not say nose. I can't figure this out.

- He can tell you the sound of a ton of animals. Cats (which he calls "cacks") say "ee-how". Goats say "knee" instead of nay. Peacocks are "pee-pops" in our house.

- Our boy can get down. He loves to dance, and seems to dance the most to bluesy-jazz music.

- When I showed him the ladder to the slide, he looked at me like "Why haven't you shown me this before?" and climbed right up to the top.

- He says hey and bye to everyone he sees. I think he is the happiest and sweetest baby I've ever met.

Oh, how I love this boy!

Outdoor boy!

2011-02-23T20:06:00.001-06:00

My friends have been telling me that the way they potty trained their boys was to just let them run around outside without a diaper on. Since it has been such good weather recently, I decided to try it. Monday, after work, I got Jason and we went outside. He was commando, I was not. After a little while, he went out to the "woods" part of our yard (where the dogs poop), and squatted. I asked him what he was doing, and he pointed to his booty and said "doo-doo". I thought he was kidding, but he was telling the truth. At least he knew the correct place to go!

Jason does love being outside. He's mastered climbing up the slide, and swinging on the big boy swing. Here are some pics/video:

Pee-pie!

In the doghouse!

Here's some video of him swinging:

Family Nap Time

2011-02-07T18:35:00.000-06:00

One of my favorite things on earth to do is family nap time. Jason usually takes a late nap, and occasionally, Justin and I are home to join him. I'm so glad that we both have jobs to where this can happen. We spend more time giggling than sleeping, and it is so precious. I know one day, Jason will be too old to do this, so we are soaking it up now.

Craft time

2011-02-07T17:18:00.000-06:00

I had to buy some thread to hem up some scrubs, and fell in love with this owl print. So, I had to come up with a craft project, and here's what I came up with:

I thought it turned out pretty good!

What does Dada say?

2011-01-25T18:07:00.000-06:00

We have been doing a lot of "What does the ____ say?" game. This is one of Jason's funnier answers!

Nanta came!

2011-01-13T17:24:00.005-06:00

This was Jason's second Christmas. It was way more fun than the first one! He actually got excited about his gifts and would say "Oooo!" if he really liked something. Santa (or Nanta as Jason calls him) got him some drums, which he was really excited about. Also, he loved looking at Christmas lights. Every little light would cause him to say "Ooo! Light!"

Catching Up.

2010-09-25T19:15:00.013-05:00

Hey everybody. This is justin. Cristie obviously hasn’t updated her blog in a while. She’s usually busy keeping Jason or being a dentist so she doesn’t have the time. Since I’m a teacher and don’t have a real job I broke into her account to try to give an updated account of our lives. Lots has changed over the past months. Jason has had his 1^st birthday, first steps , found his voice, and learned how to play drums. He's going to be the next Ringo Star.

The dogs and cat that this blog was named after we don’t even care about any more. Just kidding, Cristie and Jason still love them. In fact, Jason likes to sit on peanuts back or head or whatever is available for the taking. Cristie says he’s playing “ride-a-horsey”. We think that bread our pom may be getting fat because Jason likes to get food out and feed him one piece at a time. He thinks it’s funny.

Any way to catch you up here some of our favorite pics from our summer to catch you up.

Bunnies galore...well, not really!

2010-05-21T16:20:00.002-05:00

We had the great idea to get some bunnies to take Easter photos with. We got one bunny from out in the country past Canton, but Justin thought she was lonely. So, we had to go get another from Briarwood Pet Shop. When it came time to take the photos, the bunnies were great! Unfortunately, Jason just thought they would be fun to sit on or to pull their ears. PETA is going to come after us for this one: Justin intervened, and we did get a couple of pictures with the bunnies.We didn’t get many good pictures with them. This was the best picture we got with Jason and one of the bunnies: Poor bunny had nowhere to go, and Jason couldn't sit on top of her in his swing!

Jason did pose well for some pictures by himself. Granny’s irises that she gave me 5 years ago were a perfect backdrop!

Easter day

2010-05-19T20:09:00.000-05:00

Jason woke up Easter morning to a basket full of goodies. As you can tell, he was really amazed! Either that, or he was really tired. This was the first time he has gotten a gift and actually been interested in it. It really is amazing how much he has grown. He picked up each toy and inspected it before going to the next one. This is totally different behavior than from Christmas, where he could care less about anything but the paper.

We then made our way to church, and after church, got a good picture in front of the house and my wisteria.
Except for that dog! No, we didn't get another dog. Our neighbors just let him out, and he likes to come play with Peanut all the time. Unfortunately, this was my favorite picture! I guess everything can't be perfect.

My mom, brother, Jay, and Sandie were able to come over to our house for Easter lunch. I made brisket using the Pioneer Woman’s recipe and we had lots of other sides. Sandie had brought over eggs for dying, and the adults dyed eggs while Jason took a nap. Then, Justin hid eggs. When Jason woke up, we put him in the wagon and let him hunt eggs. Once he picked up the egg though, he thought it would be fun to smash them down. I have to admit, it did look like lots of fun!

Yeah, I know it's been a while!

2010-05-19T09:32:00.001-05:00

So, I haven’t posted in a while. 2 months, to be exact. Things have been a little crazy around here. Jason turned one, Justin’s grandparents moved from Kossuth (4.5 hours away) to Clinton, and we’ve just been generally busy trying to keep up with it all! I actually look forward to the week starting so that I can get a break from my weekends. So, I’ll try in the next few posts to catch you up!

10 months

2010-03-06T19:10:00.001-06:00

Wow. Jason is now 10 months old. He is not much of a baby anymore, and that makes me sad! I saw a baby the other day in the mall that was sooo tiny, that I had to ask the mother how much he weighed. He was 7 pounds. That's way more than Jason weighed at birth, and almost twice what his lowest weight got to. I have no memory of him being that tiny, much less smaller than that baby!

Look at him! He looks like a teeny tiny baby doll!

Now that he's in the double digits of age, he's pulling up and crawling on everything. We have gotten this gate/playyard thing and put it around our couch. We tried to make it just a rectangle, but Jason didn't like playing in it without us. So, now we've included the couch, and we call the whole area the "Booger Bear Palace". We mainly have it to protect him from the dogs running like crazy. They haven't hurt him yet, but I just get scared when Peanut hears someone at the door and flies from wherever he is to check it out. Now, with the Booger Bear Palace, Jason is protected, and Peanut still has an alley to run through! Everyone wins!

The Booger Bear in his palace

The other day (3/3/10), Justin took Jason outside for a photo shoot to celebrate 10 months. Since it was a little cold outside, Justin put his hat on Jason. What's funny is that one month ago, that hat swallowed him up! Now, it's not so big! Justin had gotten a new toy camera, and the black and white pictures are with the new camera (Holga Twin Lens Reflex). The color ones are with his real camera (Canon 5D Mark II). I actually like the Holga ones, which is funny, since the Holga camera only cost $60! The Canon, well, it costs waaaay more. Anyway, I hope you enjoy!

Standing up like a big boy!

Surprise!

Crawling

My favorite of the bunch! Guess who he is looking at?

Another fun thing he does now: when I am holding him, he sometimes puts his arms around my neck and hugs me. My sweet baby...I made him from scratch!

Field Trippin'

2010-03-06T18:44:00.001-06:00

Justin took his RHS Art Club on a field trip around Jackson. He had Jason and me come along as chaperones.

I really wasn't too keen on the idea of bringing Jason, since I thought he would be a handful. Boy, was I wrong! Turns out that teenaged girls love babies, or at least, my baby, and they took him over the minute I got on the bus.

They even held him while we ate!

We went to Mississippi College and toured the art department and the galleries there. Then, we went to Two Sisters to eat, and then walked next door to the Commons and toured their galleries. We finished up with a trip to Cups, which was really just to keep us from getting back to school before the bell rang. It was loads of fun!

The booger bear turns 9 months!

2010-02-06T15:50:00.000-06:00

My little, 4 pound, 11 ounce teeny tiny baby boy is now a 9 month old, 15 pound booger bear! I can't get over that he's this big, or that he's already 3/4s of a year old. He's crawling around, pulling up on stuff, standing up, and I just can't take it! I know everyone tells you that they grow too fast, but they really do! I've tried hard to soak it all in, and thoroughly enjoy all of the baby-ness, but I still think I could have soaked it up more, somehow. This past month has been tough, as I have had to realize that my baby boy is growing up.

Here's a booger bear, in case you were wondering what that was!

This month, we woke up at 2 AM one morning to hear Jason crying. Well, he had figured a way to stand up in his bed! He has never even tried to pull up on anything, but somehow, he managed to pull himself up to a full stand in a crib that had not been lowered down! Needless to say, Justin lowered the crib that day. Now, Jason is pulling up on everything!

Jason has stopped scooting, and started crawling. He can get to pretty much anywhere he wants to go, but for safety's sake, we have put up a "Booger Bear Palace" in the living room. It's this gated thing that we keep all of his toys in, and he's allowed free reign in it. It also keeps the dogs from running all over him.

Jason's also started talking. His first word was Mama, and he followed that later that day with Dada. The next day, he was over those words and started saying bye-bye. He liked bye-bye a lot, and would say it all the time. Until...he figured out a name for his favorite animal, our cat Butter. He calls her "Bah". I guess that's sort-of like Butter, and she seems to like it. He will say "Baaahh" whenever she comes around. He's been stuck on that word for a week or so now. Who knows what will be next?

Jason still doesn't sleep well. I guess he got that from me. I was never a good sleeper, although my parents say I slept well as a baby. Well, Jason doesn't. He goes down at about 9 PM. We have tried earlier, but he just cries until 9. So, we've given up and let him go to sleep at 9. He usually wakes at 3-4 AM, eats, and then goes back to sleep until 6:30-7. I would love to have had a baby who slept through the night at 2 months, but alas, that was not in the cards for me! I just try to enjoy those moments in the early morning were it's just me and Jason. It really is sweet when I'm not totally exhausted.

Sweet baby boy!

I love my baby boy, more than I ever thought I would. He really has changed my life in so many ways, and I wouldn't trade anything for him!

Jason giggling

2010-02-02T18:30:00.000-06:00

I know that I have posted videos of Jason laughing in the past, but I just can't get enough of my little boy's giggles. A couple of days ago, he had some stinky britches. Well, he has those every day, but this day was mighty bad. I told him so, and he thought it was hilarious! Once I finally got some video, he wasn't laughing as hard, but I still got a few giggles in.

I won!

2010-02-02T18:25:00.001-06:00

I know this happened a while ago, but I haven't blogged about it yet. I just want everyone to know that Jason said Mama first!! Yep, it was his first word. Enjoy with me, will you?

8 months old

2009-12-29T00:07:00.000-06:00

Jason is 8 months old today! Since I guess Justin got tired of me irritating him about the 7 month pictures, he went ahead and did these 8 month photos! Plus, I think he's wanting to make a new business card, and needed Jason as a model. Luckily, our son doesn't mind taking pictures. In fact, I think he rather likes it!

My oldest son

2009-12-27T23:02:00.000-06:00

Bread is the first animal that I've ever had live in the house with me. As I was growing up, I always had a dog or cat that lived outside, but my mom was really strict about animals living in the house. Although, my brother has a cat that lives in the house with them now, but I guess that's neither here nor there. Anyway, there's something different about the relationship that you develop with an animal that you share life day in and day out with. They stop being just another animal, and become a member of the family.

Butter, the cat, is a woman unto herself. She will only allow you to hold her when she deems fit. Since Rocko died, that has happened more often, but she still will not let you hold her unless she is in the mood. Peanut, the Australian Shepherd, is the consummate family dog. He is only happy when he has the whole family in one room. If we are not all in the same room, he will shepherd us together, or go crazy trying! Bread, the Pomeranian, has always been my dog. He is constantly by my side, and I love him dearly!

When Justin was taking the 7 month photos of Jason, he decided to take a few shots of my first baby. This one was my favorite:

Oh what fun it is to try...

2009-12-27T22:06:00.000-06:00

to take a Christmas card photo! For the past 5 years, I have taken pride in getting a good family Christmas photo to send with Christmas cards. With 2 dogs (and at one point, 3 dogs) and a cat, it has always been a handful, but still manageable. Well, throw a baby into the mix, and it is just plain crazy! Our friend Bill came over to help with taking the photo, but next year, I think I will get two people to come over. We really need one person to take the photo, and another to get everyone's attention.

As we were looking through all the shots (over 100), there was really only one that would work. And, it was one of the first ones. We should have quit while we were ahead! But, we sure did get some really funny ones. I wanted to share what all we went through so that I could keep the tradition going for the sixth year. Enjoy!

Peanut was not being cooperative.

Everyone, except for me, is not looking at the camera!

This one is just silly

Now, Justin's looking, but no one else is. Peanut's head isn't even in the shot.

I particularly like Jason's and Bread's faces in this one!

And finally, I gave up on everyone looking, and just picked the best one of the humans! Merry Christmas!

Sippy cups and growing up

2009-12-15T17:32:00.000-06:00

He's getting so big so quickly! I can't get over how he keeps learning new stuff each day!

The contractor's wife's house never gets built...

2009-12-15T15:46:00.001-06:00

and the photographer's baby never gets professional photos! Well, almost never. I had been bugging Justin to take Jason's 6 month pictures. Other babies get those all the time! In fact, we have taken 6 month photos of other babies. I have been threatening to just take Jason to Wal-Mart. Well, the 6 month photos never got taken. One day after his 7 month birthday, Justin took these. He said they counted as 6 month photos since Jason was 5 weeks early. Whatever. Just enjoy the photos!

We Love Prunes!!

2009-09-26T14:50:00.001-05:00

Jason has discovered prunes! I've tasted them, and they are pretty good!

Fun up in da hood

2009-09-17T19:33:00.001-05:00

I have been wanting to get outside, but the mosquitoes are terrible in our neighborhood, so I can barely go outside with Jason. Luckily, I got this bike trailer, which Jason and I love.

Jason gets to be outside, but totally miss the mosquitoes! Yay!

First Foods!

2009-09-17T19:16:00.001-05:00

Jason had started getting hungry...ALL THE TIME! I mean, I would feed him, and then he'd be hungry 1.5-2 hours later! I'm still nursing, so this took a ton out of me! Literally. So, I decided it was time to try out some real food.

First meal: Cereal

Now, it's been a couple of weeks, and he's already got some favorites. He loves pears and peaches, likes sweet potatoes, is okay with cereal, and HATES English peas! Really, I tried everything with those peas. I tried hiding them in pears, watering them down, slipping them in between bites, but, after getting tons of peas spit at me, I decided to give up. Hopefully, the vitamins will cover for his hatred of English peas!

I love that his bib is almost as big as his body!

Finally!

2009-09-12T12:09:00.001-05:00

I have been so lazy! I haven't finished any of my thank you cards, sent out birth announcements, or placed a birth announcement in the paper. Bad Mommy! But, Jason finally has a birth announcement on a webpage that chronicles events happening in Simpson County, the county where I work. Ignore the shameless self promotion/advertising I did!

Here it is!
Jason's Birth Announcement

First Day at Church

2009-09-12T11:54:00.001-05:00

We finally decided to brave going to church, after some encouragement from our friends Justin and Misty Stricklin. I had been worried about how it was going to work out, since I am nursing. Luckily, our church is prepared for that, and has a nursing room available. So, we got up early one Sunday morning, got Jason ready, fed him before we left, and went to church. Church started at 10:45. We dropped him off at 10:30. At 11, I got a text message saying to come feed him. I left the sanctuary just as the pastor was starting his sermon. When I got back, the pastor was saying, "Join me in prayer", essentially finishing his sermon. I pretty much only got to be there for the singing before and after.

Very tired, but happy to be there!

Luckily, Misty is a seasoned veteran with babies (she has 3, and is a NICU/well baby nurse), and she advised feeding him at the church before I went to the sanctuary. I did that the next Sunday, and guess what? I got to stay during the whole service! Thank goodness for good and smart friends!

The Fair

2009-08-27T18:59:00.000-05:00

This year, we tried what many others have done in the past, but still we met it with trepidation: the Neshoba County Fair with a baby. This year, my grandmother sold me and my brother the fair cabin, so I was really looking forward to my first year as a fair cabin owner, my 29th fair, and Jason's first fair. Sadly, a place where everyone stays up all night isn't the best place for a baby. Or, maybe I should rephrase that. A place where everyone stays up all night is not the best place for a baby's parents! Jason actually had a great time!

In the past, I have loved staying up to 3 or 4 A.M., dancing, eating, playing cards, and swinging on the front porch. However, when you've been getting up every 3 hours to feed a baby, staying up late is the last thing on your mind!

see the bags under my eyes???

We did manage to have a good time though. We had our friends, Justin and Misty Stricklin and their whole brood (Addie - 9 months, Mac - 4 years, and Connor - 3 years) come. Connor boy playing in the sawdust

Bill Johnson also came and stayed several days. I think him being there helped Justin keep his sanity! BEEEUUULLLLL

Justin's aunt and uncle Sandra and Jamie Monohan also came with their little boy Wesley. Wesley is the one who so nicely is sharing all of his old clothes and toys with Jason now. Several of our dear friends who come every year couldn't make it because they were being grown-ups, and they were sorely missed! Maybe next year.

Jed, my brother, entered his antique Chevy truck in the car show. This year, he managed to get a trophy and a prime spot. Yes, we are goofballs!

He was nice enough to let me and Jason ride around the horse track with him for the parade. Jason really loved the wind in his hair! Four generations of the same chin!

First Shots!

2009-08-26T13:45:00.000-05:00

Jason got his first shots the week before the fair. Luckily, our doctor's office is on top of things, and had 2 nurses who did the shots simultaneously, so we didn't have to experience too much crying! They did the shots, and then Jason let out the loudest cry I've ever heard, but once I picked him up, he instantly calmed down. They also put some cute Band-Aids on, and, as everyone knows, Band-Aids make everything feel better!

Updating

2009-08-26T13:42:00.000-05:00

I haven't been able to update this in a while, with the whole having a baby who won't sleep through the night thing. Plus, my trusty Howard computer from UMC is messing up, so I have to find a time when Justin isn't on the big computer to use it. And, Justin is always on the big computer. But, don't worry...I'm working on some blog posts right now, since Justin is at work! Tune in later for some new pictures!

More silliness!

2009-07-20T15:02:00.000-05:00

I got a new iPhone, and it takes way better pictures than my old phone. I've been trying hard to get a picture of Jason smiling, and this is a little closer than the ones before. Eventually, I will get a video of him in the act, but until then, enjoy!

Smiley boy!

2009-07-15T16:13:00.001-05:00

A couple of weeks ago, Jason graced me and Justin with his first smile. Ever since then, Justin has been trying to record it on camera. This is the closest we have gotten. I got a really good one on my cell phone camera, but the quality is poor. Until he gets better at posing for the camera, enjoy these!

And two make three

2009-05-13T14:20:00.000-05:00

Jason Cade Rives was born on April 30, 2009. He weighed 4 pounds, 11 ounces. He was 18.5 inches long. Although the nurses and doctors had been preparing us for the NICU, he came out fighting, and didn't have to spend one minute in the NICU. He came home when I came home, which was exciting.

We had been so worried about how Peanut would react. Well, Peanut turned into this gentle creature whenever Jason is around. Now, if a visitor comes to the door, he's back to his hyper self. But, if you are holding Jason, he won't jump, and just wants to sniff him. Bread seems to love him too, but we weren't worried about Bread since he has done well with babies in the past. Butter just ignores him, which we expected.

Scary stuff

2009-04-25T12:41:00.000-05:00

I used to have high blood pressure and took medication for it since 2006. However, when I got pregnant, my blood pressure dropped, so my doctor took me off of the medicine. My blood pressure has stayed down until last week. When I was doing a routine BP check, it was really high. So, I called my doctor, and had to go in last Wednesday. They put me back on medicine, and told me to come in Friday.

Oh, and I had to "collect" a 24 hour urine sample. Talk about fun! If you haven't had the pleasure, a 24 hour urine sample is pretty much what you think it is, except you have to keep the pee REFRIGERATED. Imagine how much a 8.5 month pregnant person pees in the night, and imagine having to catch all that pee and refrigerate it. It was a blast.

I came in Friday, and my blood pressure was 163/105. They made me lay down, and took it again. It wasn't much better, so the doctor wanted me to go over to labor and delivery after we did a biophysical profile. They did a sonogram and a biophysical profile test on Jason. He weighs 4 pounds 11 ounces, and scored an 8 out of 8 on the test. He's a little on the small side, which is common for white boys, or so I'm told. My doctor then informed me that we might be having this baby Sunday or earlier if my blood pressure didn't go down. If it did go down, he said I would be on bedrest.

I have not cried once this whole pregnancy. Well, I had a total break down when he told me this. I didn't know what I was going to do with my office, my baby wasn't ready to come out, and I wasn't ready for him either! He still needed time to ripen! I boo-hooed the whole way to the hospital. They wouldn't let me walk either, so I looked really pitiful riding in a wheelchair down the hall. Plus, I had told Justin not to come to the appointment with me since it would be routine. So, here I was, all alone, pitiful.

Luckily, Justin got to the hospital room right after I had changed into my hospital gown. I must have freaked him out. I have no clue how he made it that quickly, but I am so lucky to have him. He helped me calm down a lot.

Turns out I have pre-eclampsia, which is marked by blood pressure and protein in urine. It can lead to eclampsia, which is where the mom has seizures and the baby can die. So, they are putting me on bedrest. Dr. Gebhart came in this morning and said that he's going to try to keep Jason in there for 2 more weeks, which will put us at the 37 week mark, which is a healthy time to have a baby. Luckily, my blood pressure has stabilized, and will hopefully stay that way. Just keep me in your prayers! Looks like I have 2 boring weeks ahead of me.

More applique fun!

2009-04-11T09:46:00.000-05:00

Okay, after I went to Hancock Fabrics, I realize this might be getting out of hand. But, if I can't have a cute little girl to dress up girly, I can at least have a stylish little boy. I know they live in onesies, so at least his onesies will be cute! This one was hard, since I'm not really good at sewing on a curve, but I don't think he will mind.
First, you need a onesie, a printed out letter in a font you like, fabric, and fusible webbing. I used Wonder Under brand, but I'm sure any kind works well. Iron on the fusible webbing to the backside of the decorative fabric (following the directions of your webbing), and trace your letter on it. Then, cut it out, peel off the paper, and iron it onto the onesie. Technically, you can leave it at this point, but the final step makes it pop. Then, sew around the letter. This helps hold it on and keeps the letter from fraying. Just be careful to not sew two pieces of the onesie together. Those 0-3 month onesies are tiny!
Final product:Next projects: onesies with bowties and cute burp cloths.

Nesting...or whatever that means

2009-04-06T21:36:00.000-05:00

The last few days, I have been in a crafty mood. Maybe it was the 50% off sale at Quilt Arts, or maybe it was these onesies and cloth diapers that I got from the shower that were just begging for embellishment. Maybe subconsciously I know that I won't get to do many crafts in 8 weeks because I'll have an 8 pound something that will take all of my time. Whatever it is, I've been a sewing fool! I've been trying to do more posts, so I will try to spread this out.

The first craft: Sewn on tie
I had seen these somewhere on the internet, and I figured they couldn't be too hard. Well, they weren't! Luckily, I found a webpage with all the info: Crap I've Made: Appliqued Tie Onesie Tutorial. Anyway, here's my finished product:

I am so proud!!! Until now, the most I had sewn was hems, curtains, and pillows!

What a difference 9 weeks makes!

2009-04-03T18:44:00.000-05:00

On the left: Me at 22 weeks

On the right: Me at 31.5 weeks.

It's weird that less than 10 weeks ago, no one knew I was pregnant. Now, there's no hiding it! I guess Jason had to pop up sometime!

You know you are pregnant when...

2009-03-21T13:29:00.000-05:00

you go to the bathroom, pee more than 2 seconds, and feel like you really have accomplished something!

98 days!

2009-02-24T18:05:00.000-06:00

As of today, I have 98 days of pregnancy left! Yippie! I am now 26 weeks, or in normal terms, 6 and 1/2 months pregnant. I'm so ready for this to be over!

Fail Blog

2009-02-06T21:07:00.000-06:00

Failblog.org is one of my favorite sites to go to when I've had a bad day. It always makes me smile. For those of you who haven't been there, it has real pictures of things that they call "fails." Being a dentist, I had to share this with you guys!

see more pwn and owned pictures

If you notice, this is "for the breath of confidence." :)

25 Things

2009-01-24T19:23:00.000-06:00

I got tagged for this on Facebook, but realized it would be a good blog post. I really have a hard time coming up with stuff to write about on here, so I figured copy and pasting could work!

25 random things about me:

1. I am a dentist, but some days, I wonder if I should have been a vet.

2. I only like listening to music in my car and when I'm getting ready in the morning. I don't like it playing while I'm in the house, which is totally different from Justin, who always has to have music playing.

3. I like to cook and bake, but really don't want to eat anything I cook or bake. I guess I feel like I've been staring at it for the last hour, and can't stomach eating it. So, we go out to eat a lot.

4. I get a thrill when I catch grammatical errors on billboards/menus/etc, but I realize that's dorky, and I don't usually tell anyone, unless they are really close to me. So, if you've heard me say that something is spelled wrong, congrats!

5. I'm scared that I'm going to get as big as a house when I have this baby. When people tell me that I'm not showing yet (I'm over 5 and a half months pregnant), it makes me feel good. But, don't worry. I'm not starving myself. The baby is in the 89th percentile for size, which is good.

6. I have no idea what to name this baby. We have no family names worth falling back on, and nothing sounds really good with Rives. So, for now, we are calling him "Poohdiggle".

7. Everyone that I love has an alternate name/nickname that I've made up for them: Bread is Bookie, Peanut is Peter, Justin is Zusty/Musty, Butter is Butthead, etc. So, unfortunately, Poohdiggle might stick.

8. I hate Ugg shoes. I think they are UGG-ly.

9. I am the world's worst at picking a place to eat. And, if we are eating somewhere new, I will usually pick the worst thing to eat out of everyone. The only place where this didn't happen was Asia. I ate really well there! I seemed to pick the best meal each time.

10. I don't have an athletic bone in my body. My parents put me in ballet at the age of 2 to work on my coordination, and after 12 years, I wasn't any more coordinated than I was at 2.

11. I'm really proud of my little brother and the man that he is becoming. I'm also really proud that he didn't inherit my driving skills. He's yet to be in a major wreck.

12. I haven't been in a wreck since I was a freshman in college (9 years ago), but since I got in 4 wrecks in 2 years, I will always be considered by my family to be a bad driver.

13. I get joy out of the little things: blue KoolAid Bursts, Justin making the bed, and Jello pudding snacks. These 3 things can make my week.

14. I married the complete opposite of me, and I can't imagine life with anyone else. He is my best friend.

15. I'm scared that having this baby will ruin what I consider a wonderful marriage. Everyone says having a baby changes everything, and I happen to really love my life right now, exactly the way it is. Maybe it will change it for the better.

16. I really miss all of my friends that have moved. I'm talking high school, college, and dental school. I got really depressed the last month of dental school because I realized that I would probably never keep in touch with over 50% of the class. And, I was underestimating. I don't even like thinking about it because it makes me want to cry.

17. I don't like spending money, but Justin does, so we actually have a few nice things thanks to him. The only way he can get me spend money is to make me buy something right when I'm thinking about it. He knows if I leave the store to think about it, that we will never get it. That's why we buy everything (furniture, car, mattress) spur of the moment.

18. I really hope this baby gets all of my good genes and none of my bad ones. I pray for that at night when I can't sleep.

19. I also pray for my baby's future spouse, just like my parents did. I really believe that's how I ended up with such a good spouse because my parents prayed for him my whole life. I really want this baby to have that.

20. I don't sleep well, and I got this from my dad. It's only gotten worse since I've been pregnant.

21. I wish I was a meaner boss. I just want people to like me, and you can't be a good boss if you are like that.

22. I like to read about celebrities on the internet, and it annoys Justin. I don't know why it bothers him so much.

23. I used to be obsessive about painting my toes, but I've let it go since I've been pregnant. Don't worry though! They will be perfect when I deliver! I don't want people thinking I don't take care of that stuff.

24. I am extremely self conscious.

25. I still think of stuff I did in elementary/middle/junior high/high school/college and how I wish I could change it.

It's a boy!

2009-01-06T18:41:00.001-06:00

Wow...I just realized it's been months since I've posted on here. In fact, I think my last post was the day before I found out some news that's going to change and has already changed my life. I'm pregnant. And, we found out just a week ago that we are having a boy! Justin and I are really excited, but we have no clue what to name it. With a husband that teaches high school, every name I like reminds him of some kid who's a total butt.

Hopefully, we will come up with something soon!

Kids

2008-09-27T08:29:00.000-05:00

I like kids. I like fixing their teeth. However, I don’t like giving them shots. I had to give a 2 year old a shot the other day, and it broke my heart (and my eardrums). I didn’t know a human could make a noise that high pitched. Once the shot was done, she was great though! Who knows what will happen when she comes back.

Crazy Week

2008-09-16T20:53:00.000-05:00

This has been one of the craziest weeks of my life, and it's only Tuesday! Someone I trusted proved she cannot be trusted, and everything came to the surface this week. Anyway, keep me in your prayers if you get a chance!

Pad Thai

2008-09-12T10:33:00.000-05:00

Ever since we went to Thailand, I've been craving some Pad Thai. Sure, Pan Asia makes a great interpretation, but sometimes I don't want to go out and pay them to make it. After looking at several recipes online, I have mixed some up to get a very good likeness of what we ate (and loved) in Thailand. You do have to go to an Asian market to find some of the ingredients, but it is so worth it!

If it wasn't for Pad Thai and chicken fried rice, Justin would have starved. Those of you who've already heard our stories know I ate everything there, including crickets!

Anyway, onto the recipe!

Pad Thai Recipe - adapted from Chez Pim
Make the sauce first. If you don't, you will just end up with a mess. Trust me on this one! However, to make the sauce, you have to have tamarind paste. It also needs to only have the ingredients of tamarind and water. If you can only find "tamarind pulp" or "wet tamarind", you have to prepare the tamarind first. I could not find tamarind paste, so I had to prepare the paste from wet tamarind. If you don't know what you have, wet tamarind is in a block form, and paste is in a jar.

Preparing Tamarind Paste (this is the longest step)
- Soak 1/2 of the block in 2 cups hot water in a large bowl.
- Take a fork and mash up the tamarind to break it up.
- Once the mixture has reached room temperature, take your hands, squeeze the pulp and mix it all up. You have to use your hands on this one. I usually use gloves because I don't like stuff on my fingers. Work this together until it is a little runnier than room temperature ketchup. If it is too thick, add some more warm water.
- Now, strain the mixture over another bowl to get rid of the gunky pitty pieces. You will have to press this through the strainer.
- You will have more than you need for this recipe, but you can keep the leftovers in the fridge forever. I usually like having extras so I can make Pad Thai easier the next time.

Sauce
1/2 cup tamarind paste (I could only find tamarind in the Asian market)
1/2 cup fish sauce (grocery store on Asian aisle)
1/2 cup palm sugar (Asian market)
Paprika

- Palm sugar comes in hard disks, so to get 1/2 cup, I microwave it for 10-20 seconds on defrost, until the sugar can be broken up.
- Melt tamarind, fish sauce, and palm sugar in small pot over low heat. Stir occasionally.
- Add paprika 1 teaspoon at a time until it reaches your desired spiciness. Turn off pot and let rest.

Pad Thai - All of these ingredients are to taste. If you like more of one ingredient, add more!
Rice noodles (grocery store on Asian aisle)
- If they are dried, soak in hot water for 4-8 minutes to soften. You don't want this like pasta, but you just want it bendable.
Shrimp/Chicken
- Traditional Pad Thai uses shrimp. We like chicken better. Use 7 shrimp per person or 1/2 a chicken breast per person.
Firm Pressed Tofu - cut into thin bite size pieces
3-4 Tablespoons Oil
Pad Thai sauce (from above)
2 eggs
Unsalted roasted peanuts - chopped
Green onions - chopped
Bean sprouts
Garlic - chopped
Lime - sliced

1. Heat wok to smoking over high heat.
2. Add 3-4 tablespoons oil.
3. Add chicken (cut in bite sized pieces) and cook until halfway done (1-2 minutes). Then add tofu, few spoonfuls of sauce, and garlic. Cook till tofu is crisp and brown on the edges.
4. Add noodles and sauce to taste (1 cup sauce or more - I generally use all the sauce that is left over). Keep things moving! Cook noodles until soft. Break noodles up and don't let them lump together.
- If sauce evaporates, add some water and keep stirring.
- Add oil if noodles stick.
5. When noodle is soft enough to eat, push the ingredients up the side of the wok. Crack eggs and place in the middle. Let set 30 seconds to one minute and scramble. Then mix all together.
6. Add peanuts and bean sprouts to taste. Add shrimp now if you are using it.
7. When shrimp is done, add chopped green onions.
8. Plate it up with slices of lime. Enjoy!

Attack of the Killer Locust!

2008-09-08T19:25:00.000-05:00

AHH! Somehow, when we were working on a window perch for Butter (more on that later), Justin let in a locust. Scariness and hilarity ensued. It started making this crazy high pitched noise, and Butter was trying to catch it while Bread was burying his head and Peanut was running far away.

I was okay with it until…it landed ON MY BACK. What’s worse is I didn’t even know it was there. I felt something, and went to scratch, and the crazy thing made this terrible noise, which was really nothing compared to the noises I was making. I freaked out, Darin was cracking up, and Justin was nowhere to be found. Peanut, Bread, and I ran and hid in the guest room. Once the coast was clear, Peanut was too scared to come out. He’s so funny sometimes.

Friday night fun

2008-09-05T23:19:00.000-05:00

Hey guys! This is Justin taking control of this blog. I'm even putting it in my favorite font: Courier. I always liked this font because it makes term papers 1 to 2 pages longer per 5 pages of regular Times New Roman text. And, yet, the teachers can't decipher it from regular Times New Roman.

Well, anyway, we just got back from Adam Frazier's house. This was where we played our favorite Friday night game: Citadels. This game is a medieval time framed game of chance and strategery. Even though we went out earlier with Drs. Holly and Matthew deShazo at Bonefish, we still managed to make it over to Adam's house for our Friday night ritual.

By the way, while we were at Bonefish, I accidentally tried to go to the bathroom in the women's restroom. Luckily I recognized my mistake before dropping trow. It was sooo embarrassing...for my friends!

I'm so proud of Cristie for finally getting a blog. Seems that everyone these days has a blog to show everyone else their crafts, arts, and photography. Even though all you blogsters live in Memphrica, if you ever want to come to Jackfrica and hang out, let us know. We'd be happy to get a bite to eat and drive around in Cristie's new Lincoln MKZ.

I know this was kind of an aimless post, but I wanted to feel what it was like to be a true blogster. Welcome to Cristie's blog. I might drop in again; you never ever know!

Growing up

2008-09-04T22:16:00.000-05:00

I tend to get down every 6 months or so. It generally has something to do with me realizing that all of my high school, college, and dental school friends are growing up, and we are all growing apart. It really hurts. Justin says I put my best friends in baskets, and then the baskets tend to move away.

As depressing as that is, he tried to cheer me up. He decided that all I needed was some girl talk. Here is his version of "girl talk":

J: Let's talk about that show that you like. You know it's the Hollywood Hills, or something like that.
C: It's The Hills. Don't talk about this if you are just going to make fun of me.
J: No, we are doing girl talk. I love The Hills! But man, that Lou is such a bitch to Miranda!
C: Miranda? That would be Sex and the City. And who is Lou? Thanks for trying!

The name of my blog

2008-09-01T19:08:00.000-05:00

This is my first post ever on a blog. My husband thought this would be a good idea. I do enjoy reading other blogs, so maybe I will enjoy writing my own blog. We'll see.

As for the name of this blog, there are three beings in my life that mean the world to me (well, four if you count Justin, but I consider him a human and not just a being). They are two dogs and one cat. For those of you who don't know me, their names are pretty weird, but I find them cute. They are: (drumroll please) Peanut, Butter, and Bread. One day, we may get a Jelly. Maybe whenever we have a kid, we will name it Jelly. NOT! Side note: Every time I say "NOT" now, I think of Borat trying to learn a "not" joke. If you haven't seen it, it is hilarious!

Anyway, hopefully you will enjoy this venture in wasting time with me!