Puffs!!

Ben has been sick with the cold for a few days and while I was at the grocery store getting him some medicine and tissue, I discovered Puffs plus lotion with Vicks. They are fabulous!!! I had to go back and get some more boxes to store in the utility closet. It has just the right amount of vicks to clear his nostrils. I have to say it's a definite must-have.

Happy Anniversary to my wonderful husband!

Make a Smilebox photobook

Pictures of Beach Trip

Gulf Shores '08

Well, we survived our 4 day vacation at Gulf Shores. We had so much fun and Ben tells me constantly how much he enjoyed his first Father's Day. We met up with the Dawsons' at my brother's house so that we didn't have to pay for a condo/hotel. We got there Friday afternoon and spent the rest of the day at the house. We went to the grocery store (so we wouldn't have to go out for every meal) and then cooked dinner at the house.

On Saturday it was looking like it would rain so instead of going to the beach that day, we went to the outlet mall in Foley. We got some great bargains and I was glad to get some stuff for Eden. It rained while we were there but we were able to stay out of it the entire time. After shopping, we had a late lunch/early dinner at Mellow Mushroom. It was yummy. The guys decided to offer to take the girls for a ride while Kristen and I went back to shopping. It was nice to have some time to ourselves for a while. We went back home, played some games, made homeade chocolate ice cream and relaxed for the rest of the day.

Eden had a rough first night. She went to sleep around 7:30 (her usual time) but since she was in our room, she woke up when we were ready for bed. She screamed for about and hour, looking around, not sure where she was. It was rough but then she finally fell asleep and didn't wake up until morning. Wew!!

For Father's Day we went to the beach. On the way there, it was looking a little cloudy and I was starting to get annoyed. However, as we got closer it looked promising. It turned out to be the perfect day at the beach because the clouds covered the sun so it wasn't so hot. There was also a nice breeze. We took our beach umbrella and was able to keep the girls out of the sun. Eden did not like the ocean. I guess it's because of the crashing waves. However, she and Emma played in the baby pool for a long time. That was fun. Ben and I went in the water for a little bit but he was starting to feel jelly fish stinging him. We were at the beach for about 4 hours.

We then went back home to get ready to go take family pics and for a nice dinner for the dads. It was absolutely beautiful that evening. Eden and I made a Father's Day card for Ben. I traced her hands with coloring pencils all over the card. It was fun. I was able to get a picture of her giving it to him (it's kind of blurry).

Monday morning, we cleaned up, did some laundry and played one last game before we all had to leave. It was a very fun trip.

Long Week!!

Last week went by slowly. Ben, Eden and I didn't sleep very well for three days as a major change occured. I am no longer nursing Eden and so we had to switch to bottle. For 2-3 days I wasn't producing and that made Eden very frustrated as expected. She would pound on my chest hoping that milk would come. Therefore, we had to try formula. She did not want it nor did she want to eat baby food. She was just not herself. For those three days and even now I feel like I've lost that special bond we had. Once in a while I get a little sad but then I realize it's probably for the best.

What's funny is that I started producing again but experiencing what an agony it was to wean her, I didn't want to have to go through that again (I know I'll probably have to wean her off the bottle but we'll cross that bridge when we get there). Plus, it's a little bit easier to feed her in public and leave her with a babysitter.

Anyway, she is back to normal now - eating well, sleeping through the night, and happy.

Fresh Bay Scallops

Eden and I met up with my soon to be sister-in-law and her friend at Whole Foods in Uptown to have lunch and shop. Ben and I like to try new things and we love seafood so I bought some Fresh Bay Scallops (among other things). I have to say they are our new favorite fresh shellfish.

I wanted to be able to taste the natural flavor of them so I sauteed them in minced garlic, butter and lemon juice. Oh my goodness they were so good. As a side dish I steamed some asparagus in my bamboo steamer. It was a light but very flavorful meal. They were so tender and small enough that we didn't have to use our knife.

To respond to Crystal's blog, as a part of our healthy living we like to try at least one new vegetable a month and one new seafood/meat every 3 months or so. This way we don't get burned out on eating veges and we acquire an appreciation for many different types of foods.

I'd like to try spaghetti squash next...