A day in the life of Baeo

I would have to say that Braedon and I have created somewhat of a consistent routine from day to day.  Braedon wakes up between 7 and 8, he get’s dressed, plays with his cars for awhile, and eats breakfast, and then on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays we go to the YMCA from about 8:30 to 10. On Wednesdays I work out at home before Braedon gets up and then we will either hang around the house in the morning or go to Happy Hollow, the mall, or another park.

I will randomly see cars stacked on top of each other throughout the house.  It’s pretty funny.

I work out and Braedon plays in the daycare, which he absolutely loves.  On either Tuesdays or Thursdays right after the gym we either meet up with the playgroup at a park or go swimming. If we go swimming, we normally swim for about 45 minutes.  Braedon loves playing in the pool but man is it a process getting us both ready!  I’m actually loving the pool a lot right now too.  I feel so light in the water and the minute I walk up the steps to get out of the pool it feels like I immediately gained 20 pounds. However,  today we went to another pretty cool park where Braedon got to play on toys that included a train and fire truck and he also got to ride on a real train.  There are so many huge, fun parks in this area!

 

This was his first real train ride and he loved it.  I usually pack his lunch when we end up going to the park so we can stay longer and then when we get home it’s usually about 1 pm.  Nap time!  Braedon will nap for about 2 hours and if we had a busy morning, like playgroup or swimming, we usually stay home and play in the afternoon.  If we just come straight home after the gym in the mornings then we will normally get out of the house in the afternoon.  In our down time Braedon will spend his time coloring, throwing cars and blocks, pulling everything off his Mr. potato head, playing in his sandbox, searching for poop in the backyard, playing in his pool, and watching some nick jr. or the Disney channel.  When I’m not looking or in the same room he will go through my purse…

Today he found single packets of peanut butter.

Yes, I carry peanut butter in my purse.

You never know when you might need some.

He will also practice his new, cool trick.  Jumping, or “numping.”

It’s starting to get a little scary because he will try to jump off just about anything.

He’s pretty proud of himself for, “numping.”

Dad usually get’s home at about 5:30, we eat dinner, and then he gets about an hour to rough house with dad.  Last night they did take a break to play some guitar though.

Until Braedon discovered it was more fun to drop the pick IN the guitar.

After some dad time, it’s bath time and then bed by 7.  Then he wakes up and we do it all over again.  By Friday I’m wiped out and spend a bit more time on the couch counting down the hours until Derek gets home.  I think I am starting to slow down and feel the effects of being 34 weeks pregnant.  I do love my days at home with Braedon though and am going to miss them when he eventually starts school.

Nap

There are a couple of definitions for this word in our house.  Definition #1 is described as  everyday around 1 pm Braedon goes down in his crib with out a fight and will sleep for about 2 hours.  Definition #2 relates more to Braedon wanting mom or dad to take a “nap” on our big, fun bed so he can karate chop us or jump on us.  One afternoon I was really tired so I told Braedon I wanted to take a nap.  He had already had his nap but seemed like he wanted to go and cuddle on my bed with me so that I could “nap.”  Boy was I wrong.  I was lucky to leave the bedroom without a black eye.  Ever since then, almost every day Braedon demands that either Derek or myself go and take a “nap.”  We have come to the conclusion that the only reason Braedon wants us to “nap” is so that he can flail his arms and legs and use our bed as a trampoline while we lay there, flinching with his every move and hoping not to get pummeled by the crazy Baeo.  If we try to get up off the bed he will demand that we lay back down and then continue on with his spastic antics.  Does anyone want to come over and take a “nap?”  If you are lucky enough to get caught in his nap trap then I suggest you come wearing a helmet, body armor, and a cup.

Don’t let the flower hugging fool you.  This little dude has a crazy side.

Summery Quinoa Salad

I don’t normally post recipes but since I probably make this salad once a week and still can’t get enough of it, I thought I would share it with you.  For those of you who haven’t had quinoa, you are missing out!  It is probably my most favorite grain.  The basic recipe is this:

2 cups quinoa

2 cups water

1 large cucumber or a couple little ones, chopped

1 red bell pepper (or any color), chopped

a couple handfuls of grape tomatoes, sliced in half

a couple big handfuls of spinach, chopped or torn up into smaller pieces

Cilantro to garnish

So here’s the thing.  When I cook I don’t really measure anything so bare with me for the dressing…

a drizzle of olive oil, a couple tablespoons of red wine vinegar, a few squirts of lime and lemon juice, salt, pepper, garlic to taste…

Directions:

Cook the quinoa.  I usually add my quinoa to the water, bring it to a boil and then turn it down to simmer and cover for 15 minutes.  After the quinoa is cooked, put it in the fridge to cool.

While the quinoa is cooling, chop up all your veggies and put in large bowl, add your quinoa and mix in your dressing.  Put back in fridge to let it sit for another half hour or so.  Top it with cilantro before serving.

I have made this dish so many ways but this is the basic version.  In addition to the above mentioned veggies I have also added broccoli, onion, artichokes, and raw corn off the cob.  Basically whatever veggies I have on hand.  I have used this as a side dish or as a main meal as well.  When used as a main meal I have topped it with grilled chicken or shrimp, or have added garbanzo beans, and either feta cheese or goat cheese.

Give it a try!

San Francisco

We decided to spend the day in San Francisco on Saturday. We spent the day walking around and exploring Fisherman’s Wharf as well as Ghirardelli Square. This was our first time in San Francisco and we really enjoyed it. I see us going back again soon!

The Golden Gate Bridge in the fog.

Alcatraz

It was about a mile walk from our car to Ghirardelli Square and the path we took had a ton of joggers and cyclists on it. I love seeing so many active people out and about!

Baeo was showing dad where mom was, in case he didn’t know.

Braedon getting a ride from dad as I waddled behind.

After lunch Braedon fell asleep in the stroller and Derek and I walked and checked out all the old boats.

After that we ventured up the hill to heaven. Chocolate heaven that is.

You know we had ice cream for dinner! It was so good!

We took advantage of the sugar high and let Braedon run around the park on our way back to the Jeep.

Once back to the car we drove to check out the Full House house. Yes, I grew up watching and loving that show and was very excited to see the house in person…and just to let you know, I was not the only girl in my late 20’s excited to do so. Did you know the show was actually filmed in LA? The house looked so much smaller too.

From there we decided to check out what is known as the windiest and most crooked road in the world As it turns out, so was everyone else and their brother. It took us an hour to drive three blocks. See the squiggly lines on Lombard Street? That is the block.

And we are finally going down!

After this it was time to head home. It’s so nice being only an hour from this city!

I promised a headboard 4 years ago

Well it may have taken me four years but I over delivered on this one as it was just supposed to be a headboard and nothing fancy.  Unfortunately, or fortunately, I did some research and found a DIY website with quite a few plans for building wood furniture that resembles those of high priced stores such as Pottery Barn (www.ana-white.com).  My research inspired me to embark on my first substantial DIY wood project. 

Lacie and Chad were a bit concerned/confused/perplexed as to why it took me 3 1/2 hours to pick up everything that was needed but it was because I needed to buy tools, hardware, wood, paint, paint supplies, and many other random items.  Below is a pile of some of the stuff that I purchased.  Note: The wood is for the bed along with two nightstands which are going to built soon.

The headboard and footboard are slatted which required additional prep work (thank you Musashi and Lacie) to make them look spectacular along with more challenges in making the head/footboard square.

Braedon found the wood blocks to make quite nice ramps for his cars.  We will be doing some wood projects for Baeo soon enough.

I didn’t just have help from Lacie, Chad and Musashi…I also had my new little helper, Baeo. 

He was very helpful with gluing until he decided that he knew how to do it and didn’t want my help (I insisted).  He also watched me taking nails one at a time to nail the boards together and realized that he could help on that too which was quite nice.  Maybe one day he will have a bit longer attention span and help through the whole project but I will take what I can get as he was a great helper!

We had an ongoing debate about what color to paint the bed and whether to destress it or keep them a solid color.  We ultimately decided on keeping them solid black.

Lacie stepped her pregnant game up and did a phenomineal job painting with me.

We had a bit of post painting assembly in our room which included what would likely be considered an excessive number of screws but I did not want my masterpiece to fall apart.

It was an overly ambitious project but the finished product is exactly what we were hoping for. 

Now all that we need to do is get a new duvet cover and the bed is perfect.  Thank you to my great helpers on a job well done.

Awesomeness in a grinder

Oh how I love Trader Joes and am so happy to have it back in my life. A couple of days ago I found this and just about peed with excitement. This little grinder has all of my favorite things. Sugar, chocolate and coffee bean sprinkled on whatever my heart desires! Yes, please. Today I had it on my oatmeal and in my coffee. So Good! Now that I’ve got that off my ever growing chest (hello third trimester) we can move on.

After doing some research, I joined a playgroup for San Jose stay at home moms. This particular group is very active having meet ups a couple of times a week and is made up mostly of younger moms around my age. Yesterday after the gym I decided to take Braedon to the park where they were meeting. The mom’s seem pretty nice so far and there are a few kids that are Braedon’s age. We played at the park for a couple of hours and while the other moms spent their time pushing their kids on the swing or helping them go down the slide, I spent my time chasing Braedon clear across the playground and back while he chassed pigeons and tried to feed them wood chips. My boy just loves to run, and he loves wildlife. Braedon doesn’t need a playground, he needs a big open field with birds and squirrels and he would be entertained for hours. All I ask is that big open field be fenced in and locked, that way Braedon can run his little heart out and I can take a breather. We had a lot of fun though and between him playing at the YMCA daycare for an hour and then running around at the park for two hours, he was wiped by the time we got home. I fed him lunch and then he slept for three hours. I used to take Peyton to the park and run her so that she would be tired and sleep for the remainder of the day. I feel like I’m doing the same thing with Braedon.

The exchange student

Meet Hops from Ecuador. She has been visiting for the last week and heads home in about another week or so. She is pretty flexible with her travel plans.

She is 5 months old and a complete sweetheart. She is pretty fluent in English and gets along with Peyton very well. They have become buds! Her likes include sleeping on the air conditioner vents, playing with Peyton, eating, sleeping, sneaking toddler toys, and chewing the spongy magnet letters from the fridge. Her dislikes-Braedon. He scares the pee out of her. Literally. Braedon is just too crazy and loud and when he chases her around the house she is not amused at all. So I guess you could add Braedon’s naptime and bedtime to Hops’s list of likes.

UPDATE: Hops is no longer scared of the Big B...but she has now returned to her family (Chad & Musashi).

Balloons

This 4th of July we got up before the butt crack of dawn and headed to Tracy, CA, which is about an hour from our house, to watch hot air balloons get ready at take off at 6 am.  It was a gorgeous morning with temps in the mid 60s (it ended up getting up to 101 today) and it was pretty cool seeing the balloons take off.

The balloons getting ready.

 

Almost there…

And we have lift off!

Doesn’t Braedon look thrilled?

After we watched the balloons there was a pancake breakfast followed by the city parade.  Braedon really enjoyed the parade, especially the fire trucks and the copious amounts of candy that was thrown at him.  Sugar high before 10 am.  Nice.  The parade was followed by a whole day filled with activities at the park in Tracy, including kiddie rides, fair food, BBQ, performances, and a bunch of other stuff.

Braedon practicing his fishing skills for our upcoming camping trip.

A hot day requires more fountains for keeping cool.

I even enjoyed going through the fountains today!  It was hot!  We stayed and played in Tracy until about noon and then decided to head home.  We had been up since a little after 4 am and so it really felt like it could have been 4 in the afternoon.  We stopped on the way home to get some little fireworks and then came home and laid low for the rest of the day.  Derek and I sat on the deck and watched Braedon play in the yard and then we lit off the fireworks before Braedon had to go to bed.  By 7 pm our 4th of July had come to an end.  Yes, we know how to party.  It was a very fun day and I think Braedon had a blast!