The Meandering Thoughts of Jan

There is a time when things fulfill their purpose and that is how I've been feeling with this blog of mine. When I started it, I needed my own little spot to share my thoughts and random stuff I found online. However, having two blogs has become excessive. It has been a good run (me and this little blog) and thanks for joining me. For now on, I will just be posting on my family blog . It's a private blog, but send me a message or a request if you would like to view it. Thanks to those who have taken the time to read my silly thoughts or look at pictures of my cute kiddo or some craft I made. It means a lot to me. Signing off, Jannifer

I haven't posted forever, but I thought I would share this article that caught my eye. It's about marriage, but it made me ponder many of my relationships. I feel like expectations are natural and there should be some expectations in life. But at the same time when do expectations cross the line to being incredibly selfish? Sometimes we create roles for other people to play and we don't even realize we are doing so. It's a thought-provoking article and I'm still thinking about it. In other news, I tend to have this habit when I find a song or new album I really love, I listen to it over and over again. This is the song I've had on replay lately.

I had to put the sign far away from him, because he kept trying to knock it over. He eventually succeeded and got chalk all over the duvet.  Here is the final installation of Baby H's monthly update. I don't think I can keep up with the monthly updates, plus the monthly pics have become incredibly difficult to take. This boy is a mover! Milestones (I feel like so much has happened this past month!) Now shakes his head "No" if he doesn't want to eat what I'm feeding him or if he is full. Learned to push himself up to sitting position, which is making nap time a bit more difficult. He figured out crawling and is a pro at it. He can pull himself up to standing position. He's also figured out how to take steps while holding on to things, like walking around the table. Looks like he's figuring out crawling and walking at the same time. Got his two bottom teeth at the same time! He actually handled teething really well. There were only a couple...

Milestones Baby is starting to take steps while holding our hands. He pulled himself to standing position when in his crib. Got the spoon to his mouth all by himself, though Danny and I still feed him for the most part. He's gone swimming and hiking (in a baby carrier) for the first time! We love summer! Is completely weaned. Likes Grapes, Yogurt, Berries, Watermelon, Waffles  Light switches and turning the lights on and off. Looking at pictures or videos of himself. Hikes! His swimming raft and splashing in the water. Rolling all over the place. Crying to be picked up and then trying to dive out of his mommy's arms. Ceiling fans Dislikes Pretty much all vegetables  Diaper Rash - First time he's ever really gotten it and it is so sad. When mommy started wearing her hair in a ponytail. He wasn't used to it and it scared him. "Real food" He still prefers baby food purees and we are having a hard time getting him to eat anything wit...

Happy 10 months! Milestones He now plays peek-a-boo where he will hold a blanket up to his face and pull it down, waiting for our reactions. He is finally sleeping through the night. Not all the time, more like a handful of times, but I'll take it. He can stand when holding onto something without having one of us hold him up. He calls me "Mama," but not consistently. He usually says it when he is sad and I come get him from his crib or if he wants me to hurry up and give him his food. Every once in awhile I will get a happy "Mama" as well. He also will sometimes say "num num num" when it is time to eat or if he is hungry. Likes Avocados (sometimes), Mangoes, Berries, Apricots (sometimes), Apples, Bananas (if other fruit is mixed with it), Cherries (mixed with apple sauce), Sweet Potatoes and Cereal. Cars. He kicks like crazy with excitement when one drives by. Favorite toys: Anything with tags and his octopus that plays music. It us...

Since May is almost over, here's April on Instagram! Enjoy. April 5th - The Easter Bunny came! April 6th - Annual birthday dinner with Talena! April 10th - Cutest little boy! April 11th - Cake for breakfast is always a good idea. April 11th - I was impressed. April 11th - This picture warms my heart and makes me want to kiss those little cheeks. April 13th - The Tulip Festival! April 13th - Me and baby at the Tulip Festival. April 14th - Also from the Tulip Festival, my awesome sunburn. I tend to forget I'm a red head at the beginning of each spring when the weather warms up.  April 18th - Hanging out with my boy on the porch swing.

9 months! Cutest little face! Milestones Baby H really likes standing (with help) and is getting pretty good at it. He's added some new sounds to his babbling: da, ba, wha, boo Easter! The Easter Bunny brought him a stuff toy frog and some treats. At his 9 month check up, our pediatrician said he had really good transfer skills, meaning passing things back and forth between his left and right hands. Stats from his 6 month appointment: Length - 25 inches  (below .02 percentile, meaning he is pretty much off the charts.)  Weight - 15 lbs 4 oz (.97 percentile) Head Circumference - 17.5 inches (31.12 percentile) So he's pretty much the littlest baby of them all, for his age. Likes Mangoes, Apples, Peaches, Blueberries (mixed with bananas or apples) , Cereal, Squash (sometimes) and Avocados (sometimes) When we clap our hands. He likes to grab both of my pinkies and make my hands clap together. Turning the pages in his books as fast as he can. Speed ...

This month is my birth month. Some people have birthdays, others birth weeks, but I have a birth month, because why not? For some reason the age of 32 has caused me to be rather reflective. Since I'm stuck in a chair with the most perfect little baby sleeping in my arms after an entire week of horrible naps, it seems like a good time to try to create some order of my reflective thinking. I've been thinking a lot about my 20's. I'm proud of my 20's in a lot of ways. I accomplished a lot of goals and had a lot of fun with only a few regrets on the side. One of my friends described 20's as being so great because it is a decade of firsts, which is true in a lot of ways. As I've been thinking about my 20's I have dubbed it "The Decade of Love." I think I know what you are thinking, "That's so sweet, because you found your love, Danny, in your 20's." Yes, Danny coming into my life is part of The Decade of Love, but that is just ...

March 6th: This little boy sure makes life fun! March 12th: Already planning on starting a band with his daddy. March 18th: He's got a talent for getting baby food everywhere except for actually letting me put it in his mouth. March 19th: Our new game. It's a little bit genius,  because I get to lay down. March 20th: I was feeling homesick for SLC and the tulips at Temple Square and the blossoms at the Capitol, so I decided to go on a walk with baby boy to see if I could find any signs of spring. The majority of the landscape was still dead out here, but I thought this tree was pretty. March 24th - Babies in overalls makes me happy. March 27th: I love his babbling and he loves his monkey. March 30th - Popcorn popping...

Smiling at Daddy Showing Mr. Lion who's boss. Milestones: New food this month: Carrots, Peas, Oatmeal, Prunes, Green beans, Squash He's really interested in making different noises and sounds with his mouth. I feel like he is watching us intently trying to figure it out. ("It" meaning talking.) He hasn't started to crawl yet, but he has gotten up on all fours. He finally rolled from his back to his stomach. He's been rolling the other way for months now. He doesn't like being on his stomach, so he avoided rolling to that position for a really long time. First St. Patrick's Day, because that's a big deal. Likes: At the beginning of the month, he liked to grab my face and bring it really close to his and yell. Apparently, it is a fun game. His favorite toys are his toy guitar from his Aunt Michele, his toy car from his Aunt Katie and Uncle Tim and he really likes his stackable rings. The vacuum. It is a fascinating specime...

I ran across a few articles that I found interesting enough to share. First,  This article is a goodbye letter from a dad with cancer to his infant daughter. It is so sad, but so beautifully written and it made me grateful for my boy. This article is about long lost negatives that turned out to be stunning photography taken by a nanny in NYC in the 50's and 60's. I'm now interested in seeing the documentary about this. As for me, right now my life is revolving around trying to get the baby boy to sleep in his crib. This might sound like a simple thing, but has been weeks and weeks of trying and missing sleep in the process. Such is life of being a mom. With the warming of temperatures, I'm itching to start a home improvement project. When we moved into this house 9 months ago, I was fine with most of the paint colors, which are mostly beige, tan and green, very natural colors. However now having lived here for a bit, our house seems too dark to me. I can...

Feb. 10th - Sometimes he puts his hand on top of mine when we read books and I think it is the  sweetest thing on earth. Feb. 13th - Cutest face in all the place. Feb. 18th - We have had  unseasonably warm weather this winter, so we went to the park with some friends. Baby H was rather fascinated by this thing we call grass. Feb. 23rd - Sweet potatoes are for wearing, not for eating. Feb. 27th - We went to Houston for Danny's brother's wedding. We spent a lot of time in the car, but were delighted by this lovely sunset one evening while driving on the interstate. Feb. 28th - The Grandma, Daddy and Baby and also quite possibly one of the best photo bombs I've seen by Danny's brother Nathan. Feb. 28th - All dressed up for the reception. PS Bow ties are cool.

Milestones Baby H is sitting up like a champ. He's tried a few more different types of food: Sweet Potatoes, Avocados, Apple Sauce and Pears He turns pages in his books and he grabbed the spoon and fed himself the other day. He has just started to wave at people. First time on an airplane! Overall, he handled it really well. First time to a new state, which was Texas. (It was my first time to Texas too.) We went for Danny's brother's wedding. Likes He is really liking his little jumper activity center. He doesn't really jump in it, though. He more tries to walk and is bounced around. His toes! And putting those toes in his mouth. Grunting, yelling, making noise in general. He can be a very loud baby. He thinks it is hilarious when I pretend to eat his hands. FaceTime! He's grabs for my phone all the time now if he sees it. He's especially liking books this month. When he's sad, we sit down and read a few, and it calms him down. He li...

Better late than never... Jan. 3rd - Found this gem in Danny's sister's family album. I have a major crush on him. Jan. 7th - The joys of peek-a-boo. Jan. 12th - Chilling in my gnome socks from Talena and eating crackers and frosting while Danny puts the baby to bed = bliss. Jan. 14th - This face. How will I ever say no?! Jan. 17th - Trying solids for the first time. He seemed to like the rice cereal. Jan. 19th - Just enjoying the spring like weather, which has been the case for most of this winter. Jan. 20th - Art comes in many forms. This particular night it came in the form of berries and pineapple on a massive sugar cookie. And there was much rejoicing. Jan. 23rd - Spitting. All the time. Jan 26th - I take way too many pics of this boy sleeping, but look at how precious he is! This particular day he refused to take naps anywhere but my arms, but honestly it was sweet, even if it gave me a dead arm. Jan. 28th - My cousin gave me this ...