5 Months Old!

5 Months Old! He wouldn't smile for a single picture. 5 months old! Yay! I have no weight/height stats since he doesn't have a doctor appointment this month. But no doctor appointment means no shots, so I'm happy! He is getting big though, and is rapidly outgrowing his 3-6 month clothes and moving into 6-9, and is still in a size 2 diaper. This month can be summed up in two words: Sleep Deprivation. Henry's sleep this month has been horrible . He's been sleeping in 1-3 hour spurts, which is significantly less than he slept at even one month old. Blah. I'm pretty much a walking zombie at this point, but I guess it comes with the new-parent territory. A lot of the sleep problems have been attributed to Henry's acid reflux. This month alone he has had his medication dose/type of medication changed 4 times. Over the last 3 days, Henry has been on a new type of medication which I hope will help him. But this medication takes several days to become fully ef...

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Yummy Grass?

"What's this?" "Oooooh!" "Grass!" "Hmmm?!" "I'm going for it..." "Yummy grass!" "Yuck! Are you kidding me?" "Oh, what's that?" "On to my next adventure." (Yep - Henry's sitting by himself now) ...

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Elliot's Baptism

Last weekend precious baby Elliot (our nephew) was baptized in Eau Claire. So Morgan, Henry, and I made the trip down for the day.           It was a beautiful day, and a wonderful celebration. Congrats Angie, Adam, and especially Elliot! ...

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Summertime Fun: Zoo!

Last weekend we took Henry to the zoo for the first time. We went to Como Park Zoo and Conservatory which was great. Henry really liked the Conservatory. I knew he would since he loves being outside and loves warm weather. He particularly liked the water features. If Hen could have it his way, we would have spent a lot more time there. He was pretty mad though, that, I wouldn't let him destroy touch all the flowers. Henry staring down the empty stroller - his nemesis - I had to wear him for all of the trip. Next we went out to the zoo. Henry wasn't actually that impressed with the animals. He did love all the children and the tall grass around the outdoor exhibits. But after about 10 min he promptly fell asleep. It was a really great trip and made Morgan and I excited to go back when Henry actually has an interest in the animals. Henry "met" a real Sophie ! ...

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Summertime Fun: Pool!

I love the summer!!! That's LOVE! I really think I should move south so I can enjoy warm weather more. Since we only get 3 months of nice warm weather,  Morgan and I have been taking full advantage of the summertime fun with Henry. Its been so hot, so we took Henry to Highland Park Pool in St. Paul. Its a brand new facility, and is really really nice. They have a great little kids area, with only a couple of inches of water with little spouts where water bubbles up. Henry absolutely loved it. Hen loves baths and loves being outside, so the pool combined both of those and he was in heaven! The only downside was that it was so hot that we couldn't stay long, and they charged us for Henry! So it was a quick and expensive trip.   ...

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Breastfeeding

Tomorrow marks the end of World Breastfeeding Week . And I've wanted to write this post to honor it all week but Henry has been crabby, clingy, and an all around hot mess so it been pushed off, but here goes... I'm very proud to say that Henry has been exclusively breastfed for the past 20 weeks (with the exception of medication, and a couple of tablespoons of avocado). It's just amazing to me to think that I am literally able to keep another human being alive. And not so he's just living, but thriving and growing and learning. I'm in complete amazement of my body. Breastfeeding has been truly a wonderful experience. I am very lucky in that we have had very few breastfeeding issues, and Henry has nursed great from the day he was born. His nickname is actually Snarfels, because the snarfs down his food so quickly and happily. Its actually very hard for me to put into words how I feel about it, since no other  life experience is like it. I feel like b...

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Dining Out: Rules We Live By (Part 3)

The last three Rules! (4) Tipping Rules I will tip 20-25%. I worked in the service industry for a lot of years, and know how important those tips are to the servers. I will not stiff someone on their tip to save money. However, it’s also not that hard to work in the service industry either. There are genuine excuses for poor service (the place is packed) for which I am fine with. But some servers are just terrible, for which I have no sympathy. The tip is not automatic. I do think that 15% represents “average” service, 20% “good” service, 25% “great” service, and 10% “poor” service. If it was so bad that even 10% isn’t warranted, then it’s all or nothing, 10% is the lowest amount. I have left no tip on several occasions. (5) The Favorites List Rule Not many restaurants can make it to the Favorites List and avoid the Branch Out Rule. However, there are some places that we love enough to make the list. Typically a place on the Favorites List is not very expensive. The List include...

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Dining Out: Rules We Live By (Part 2)

(2) The Chain Restaurant Rule Nicole and I feel as though, when living in a city, there’s no reason to go to chain restaurants because there’s so many local places to try. We also think all the food is pretty similar at all the chains. The Chain Restaurant Rule is not as strict as the black list though. Green Mill is exempt from the Chain Restaurant Rule, mainly because I worked there for years as a cook, but also because I genuinely think their food is better than most chain restaurants. Sometimes the Chain Restaurant Rule overlaps with the Black List. I won’t go into detail, but the Chili’s in Roseville is black listed, and also every single Buffalo Wild Wings. “Local” chains are also generally exempt from the Rule (such as Punch Pizza or Brassa), along with fast food restaurants. (3) The Branch Out Rule This rule is simple: if we decide we’re going to eat out, we try our best to branch out and try something new. There’s no reason to keep going back to the same places ...

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Adventures in Avocado

Henry had his first taste of solid food a couple days ago. Not sure what to think.   I originally wanted to wait until a little closer to 6 months to give him food, but after he threw a nuclear meltdown when I refused to give him the pancakes I was eating we decided it was time.    He grabbed the spoon and dug in! For a variety of reasons, we decided to skip rice cereal and started with avocado. So after dinner one night, we stripped him down and gave him some. The reaction was a mixture of shock, disgust, and love. Solids will just be an occasional treat for the next month or so, but I'm excited to move into this stage.   ...

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We have a Pepper!

Yes, it makes Henry's hand look huge. But its a pepper, which is way more than I expected from our plants! ...

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Dining Out: Rules We Live By

Nicole and I love living in a metropolitan area. The Twin Cities is a great place to live. It’s not too big, and there is always something to do. One of the prime reasons we love to live in a city is that we can always find good food. We follow six rules for dining out: (1) The Black List Rule; (2) The Chain Rule; (3) The Branch Out Rule; (4) The Tipping Rule; (5) The Favorites Rule; and (6) The Pasta Rule. I will post about each rule separately. (1) The Black List Rule This is a very important concept. The basic idea is this: if we eat at a restaurant and the experience is so outrageously bad, the restaurant is “black listed.” This is a very serious matter. Once a restaurant is black listed, it can never, ever come off the list. Once on the list, we can never eat there again. Never before has a restaurant been removed from the black list. Nicole and I both must agree to place the restaurant on the black list. When a restaurant is under consideration for the black list, it i...

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