21 Month Update

Next week Rowen turns 21 months so I thought I'd do a quick update.  I cannot believe we'll be celebrating her 2nd birthday in just a few months - better start planning! :)

Age:  21 Months

Stats:  Good question!  She hasn't been to the doctor recently so I am not sure, but I do know she is growing like a weed!

Teeth:  Molars are in and she's been very crabby because of it.

Clothes:  Shirts: 24 mo/2T.  Pants: 18/24 months.

Favorite Foods:  Still loving noodles aka "nooles".  She's also been loving fruit a lot more lately- raspberries and grapes are her favorites.


Milestones:

• Can sing her ABC's all the way through 
• Talking, talking, talking!  She's saying so much now and putting together sentences like you wouldn't believe - so fun!
• Recognizes the colors green, pink, blue, yellow, black and white
• Can count to 14
• Graduated to a booster seat
• Now sleeps with a pillow

Favorites Things:

• Baby Dolls:  Loves to push them around in her toy stroller - also asks to bathe them!
• Coloring:  We recently finished our playroom (yippee) where she has her own drawing table.  She loves to color and have us color with her.
• Playing Outside:  She can't get enough.  She loves playing with her basketball hoop, going on walks, and just running around the yard.  We can't wait for summertime!
• Singing:  Current favorites stem from the movie Frozen.  You'll often times hear her singing a lyric from one of the opening songs " a snowman, bike around hall" - so funny!
• Doors:  Shutting every door in the house and then opening them as fast as she can while shouting, "Hello Rowen!".  It's so funny to hear her say her own name.  
• Buckles:  Is currently fascinated with buckles - the buckle on her booster seat, her car seat, and in the carts at the grocery store.  
• Trucks:  Loves to spot all of the trucks on the road when we are driving.
• Wheels on the Bus:  Her favorite bedtime song.

Least Favorite Things:

• Going to Bed:  Up until a few weeks ago, putting her to bed was no problem.  Now though, she fights it and cries while saying "no go plaaaay" in her crib for about 10 minutes until she falls asleep.

Signature Moves: 

• Shaking her booty:  So funny to watch her try to do it - not quite coordinated enough!

Sleep:

• Naps:  Still takes one afternoon nap - about an hour is all.
• At Night:  *Sigh*.  This one has been tough recently.  Along with fighting us at bedtime, she's also been waking up for an hour or two at night (not every night, but more often than we'd like).  Before this started she was a rock star sleeper, sleeping almost 11 hours straight every night.  We think a lot of her new sleeping problems have to do with the molars she has coming in, and also the fact that she may be dreaming more at night.  We're not sure...still trying to figure it out.  In the meantime, we let her cry-it-out for 20-30 minutes and if that doesn't work, we go in and lay on the floor next to her crib until she falls back to sleep.  Ryan and I both refuse to let her sleep in our bed.  It would probably solve our problem, but I've heard too many stories about kids never wanting to sleep in their own bed again after being allowed to sleep with mom and dad (I know, we're mean).  :)

Here are a few recent pics of our girl:

Shared with:

Meal Plan Monday

It snowed today.  S-n-o-w-e-d.  What the heck?!

Anyway, it's Easter week!  It's only a four day work week for me, so I am hoping these next three days go by quickly!

Here's what's on our calendar for meals this week:

Monday:  Sweet & Sour Pork

Tuesday:  Veggie Casserole

Wednesday: Taco Spaghetti

Thursday: Grilled Asian Chicken Salad

Friday:  Cheeseburger Crescent Bake

Shared with: 

OrgJunkie

Weekend Wrap Up

What a fun weekend it was!

Friday night the weather was too perfect to spend the evening indoors, so we headed to the park where we met up with my cousin and her daughter, Gabriele for some fun on the slides!

***

Saturday was another gorgeous day!  I started it off with a seven mile run and then hurried home to meet up with my sister so we could spend our afternoon with Rowen at the zoo!  I hadn't been to our local zoo in 10+ years, so it was just as fun for me as it was for her!  The zoo was packed when we got there because they were having their annual Easter Eggstravaganza!

We spent a majority of the time walking around looking at the different animals, but I think her favorite part of it all was just spending time with her Auntie, Sarah.

After about 45 minutes, it started getting hot and very crowded so we decided to check out the egg hunt.

I was a bit nervous she'd be too young for it, but I was wrong, it was perfect for her age!

Each kid got an egg carton to fill up with plastic eggs.  Then, once their carton was full, they traded it in for a treat bag!  So fun!

After the egg hunt we decided it was time to go.  The temp was up in the low 80's (yay!) and we were all getting hungry.

Next stop...lunch at Chick-fil-A!

Rowen was exhausted by the time I put her in the car.  Not two minutes after pulling out of the parking lot, she was out like a light!

Saturday night was spent in front of the fire pit getting to know our new next-door neighbors. This neighborhood has a lot of kids in it, I'm excited to watch Rowen make friends over the next couple of years!

***

This morning we woke up to rain, rain and more rain.  Yesterday was sunny and hot and today it was cold, windy and rainy...go figure!  

Even though it was raining, we still decided to get out of the house to do a little clothes shopping for Rowen.  The girl is now set for Spring/Summer!

Later, we ventured out to pay (what I thought would be) a fun visit to the Easter Bunny!  Bad idea, she did NOT want to sit on his lap.  The second she laid eyes on him she started to cry.  There was no way we were going to get her to sit by herself, so I joined her.

Hope you had a good weekend, too!

Five on Friday

1.  The average viewing age for the Disney Channel is about to go up 15+ years and this is why...

Cory and Topanga are back and I cannot wait!!  I am not ashamed to admit I WILL be watching this when it airs!

2.  Hilarious.  I totally wish this were true...

3. Is it just me or are pallets all the rage right now?  I'm seeing them everywhere!  Luckily, I was able to get my hands on a couple of pallets myself.  Seriously thinking about making something like this for our patio!

4. It's pictures like these that are just making me itch to do some yard work!  Ryan and I both really want to do a garden in our backyard and now that Spring is finally here I think we may have to get started! Yay!

5.  My daughter has zero summer clothes.  She's currently growing like a weed so I am excited to get out this weekend and buy her some necessities!  I plan to make a stop at Carters...I love a good sale!

Shared with:

Toddler Snack Solution

There are tons of ideas on Pinterest about how to organize a pantry and I am not ashamed to admit that this type of thing gets me very excited!  One specific idea I found is the “snack box”, which we've been using for awhile now.

My daughter typically eats a morning snack and an afternoon snack, but if it were up to her she'd snack all day on cheese and graham crackers (sorry kid, not happening).  She has also recently found her voice when it comes to deciding what she wants to eat at snack-time.  The words, "no", "no" and "no", followed by a small tantrum are often heard.  To avoid this we have implemented a “you choose” method.  Here's how it works:

I created two snack boxes for her, one is kept in the refrigerator and the other in the pantry.  Both are filled with (fairly) healthy snacks that she likes.  

For the dry snacks, I used a wicker basket to hold goodies like granola bars, crackers, pretzels, etc (trust me, it’s not normally this neat). 

For cold snacks, I used a small, plastic bin that sits on the top shelf in our refrigerator.  This holds things like fruits, cheese (her favorite), yogurt, etc. 

When snack-time rolls around we simply reach for both boxes, bring them down to her level, and tell her to choose one item out of each box.  She loves it!  Once her first choice items (like cheese) are gone from the box, I don't replace it right away so that she moves on to try other things. So far it's working!

In the future I see this box coming in handy when it comes time to pack her school lunches or for quick snacks on the go!

Shared with:

Serendipity & Spice

My Addiction Revealed

The other day I got this baby in the mail!  My very own Starbucks Gold card!  

 I go every day, sometimes even twice-a-day, so I know I’ve earned it!

My weekly morning routine goes something like this…get up, get ready, head to Starbucks, head to work, repeat the next morning.  It’s an addiction, and I often wonder if I can even function at work without my piping hot (or sometimes cold) cup of deliciousness.  I don’t really have a “usual” when I order, I like to switch it up throughout the week, but I do like to keep it low sugar and low cal. 

1. Skinny Peppermint Mocha  (100 calories, sugar free syrup)

2. Skinny Hazelnut Latte (100 calories, sugar free syrup)

3. Non-fat, no whip, White Chocolate Mocha (250 calories)

4. Iced, non-fat Vanilla Latte (120 calories)

5. Unsweetened Green Iced Tea (0 calories) 

Many of you may wonder how I can afford such an expensive addiction.  Well, as I stated in a previous post, Ryan and I budget using the envelope system.  Two of the envelopes in our budget system are dedicated as personal envelopes - one for me, one for him.  This means we can spend it on whatever the heck we want, no questions asked!  Needless to say, a good chunk of my envelope goes to coffee, but that's my choice and I am A-ok with that!  :)

Meal Plan Monday

Got some good ones for you this week!  The weather is supposed to be pretty decent for the next few days, so I am hoping to eat some of these meals outside...we'll see!  Enjoy!

Monday:  Grilled Turkey Burgers

Tuesday:  Pepperoni Stuffed Chicken (we'll be using Turkey Pepperoni)

Wednesday: Philly Cheese Steak Sloppy Joes

Thursday: Italian Chicken Bake

Friday:  Skillet Lasagna

Shared With:

Org Junkie