Annabeth's 6 Month's Stats

Weight: 20 lbs 94%
Height: 27 3/4 inches 95%
Head: 17 1/4 inches 82%

• My other babies did not to be 20 pounds till they were 1 year old!
• We have to keep an eye on her weight because if she gets to be over 22 lbs then we have to move her out of the infant car seat.
• December 17th she got her first real illness (she has been congested in her nose for the majority of her little life). She got diagnosed with a left ear infection and amoxicillin of course did not work so then on the 18th she had a bad double ear infection. We are so thankful to Jesus for this being her first infection. My other babies had multiple ear infections by this time. 
• She is a complete joy and so strong and so smart. As of now she says baby and signs it. 
• She started crawling the week before she turned 7 months. She is so fast now! She is also is standing some by herself now.
• She has a temper...sadly. 
• She is still not a great sleeper so pray for mama and daddy...we are little weary. I am not able to do some things I enjoy like blogging...haha. I can already tell getting her off the bottle is going to be a huge challenge.
• My Joycie is a Joy!

Any advice on how to get a 8 or 9 month old to eat more food and less bottle?

Monkey Joe's: Half Price Wednesdays

About every week, one of my babies asks to go to Monkey Joe's. We have not been since cousin Jake's birthday in December, and now we have been twice in two weeks. The above pictures were two Monday's ago in Spartanburg. Charlie had a meeting every night last week and I needed a getaway, so we went to Spartanburg for the day two Monday's ago (my parents took us to Monkey Joe's which was fantastic).

Today we went to Monkey Joe's in Gastonia, and they have half price day on Wednesday and I met a couple friends out there. I am also friends with MJ's on facebook where they let me know when they are having events with chances to win a free birthday party there. We had another great time there, and I will hopefully upload pictures soon.

I have a feeling we will be going to Monkey Joe's a good bit during this summer. I am a little nervous about this summer because it will be the first time I have not had a gym membership since I had Jackson, and I really do not want to get one for the summer. If you stay at home, what are some fun, inexpensive things you do with your babies during the summer (the first thing out of Jackson's mouth every morning is...where are we going today mommy?....)?

Snowed in All Week=Time to Get Organized!

I got sterilite containers at Walmart before we got snowed in which I am so thankful for!

What I did to clean out the junk drawer:

1. Went through it all and put everything in piles, and threw away a lot.
2. Organized everything into three main piles. Tools, writing stuff for the kids, and miscellaneous. I do still have one zip lock bag for a game we take to play at restaurants.
   
3. After I dumped everything out, I did clean the draws really well.

Now, that I have all their "Preschool" worksheets organized, we were able to have "school" time two times this week while snowed in. The school lets me know ahead of time what they are working on, and this week they would have been working on the letter "X".

Do you have any suggestions on how to help Jackson write his letters on his own, beside worksheets, and a chalkboard?

Do you have any organizational tips for organizing your house? The sterilite containers were key for me being able to organize this drawer (the big ones were $3).

Abigail's 18 Month Old Check Up

Weight: 24 pounds and 3 ozs (50%)
Height: 32 1/4 inches (50-75%)
Head Circumference: 75%

Funny thing is that I checked Jackson's blog post (here) and he was 24 pounds and 4 ozs at his 18 month old check up.

I am beyond thankful that Abigail is right where she needs to be with her words, probably a little a head of where she needs to be. If you ask her what her name is she can say Abigail and the other day she said, "I see the flower." While we were at the doctor's office a ball hit the doctor and she told the doctor that she was sorry...ha! She loves to sing, and tells me what she needs all day long with her words.

Eating: She is a lot better eater than Jackson, but she is started to become more picky. The big issue with her that the doctor and I discussed is her not drinking but a few ozs of milk a day. She eats yogurt and cheese, but is not liking whole milk even out of a straw.

Any suggestions on how to increase her milk intake?

The doctor's suggestion was hardly offer her any juice, but she really loves her 8 ozs of juice a day!

She still has pear baby food and squash baby food and is good about trying new foods. We finally got rid of her wake up bottles last month, she told me she did not want them anymore...ha!

More February Pictures taken with My New Camera

Still learning how to take pictures with my new camera. Loved all the advice I got from the last post on my first round of pictures with this wonderful camera. Keep the advice coming!

In 7 Weeks, I have Lost ...

8.8 pounds at Weight Watchers! I have now met my first weight target of 8 pounds (5% of my weight).

Last week, I lost, 2.8 pounds, which was very exciting! My parents started trying it out on Monday so that helped out tremendously (I have not been to my work out classes at all this week either).

I highly recommend Weight Watchers (I have heard online is good as well). The 3 month journal is the most helpful tool, along with the points calculator. When I started Weight Watchers I was 8 pounds overweight (which makes a big difference for shorter people), and right now I am still 10 pound away from my ultimate weight. When I joined Weight Watchers, I was just sick of eating terribly. Weight Watchers is really the only weight loss plan I know of that you can actually go out to eat and not feel bad about your eating choices. As of now, I pay $11 a week since we are in transition, but they have good 3 months passes that are better deals for the long haul.

Just to motivate you even more, here is how you figure out how many points you can have in a day:

1. What do you weight? Enter the first two digits of your weight in pounds for example, if you weigh 175 (WW book says), enter 17.

2. Are you: female?.....2. males you get 8 points here

3. How old are you:

17-26-you get 4 points
27-37- you get 3 points
38-47 you get 2 points
48-58 you get 1 points
over 58-you get 0 points

4. How tall are you

Under 5"1..................0 points
5"1-5"10......................1 points
Over 5 "10....................2 points

5. Do you spend most of the day

Sitting down.................0 points
Occasionally sitting, but mainly standing................2 points (MOMS)

6. Nursing Moms?

solely breastfeeding.......10 points
Supplementing breastfeeding with some solid foods are formula..............5 Points

(I have also talked to a leader that said if you are pregnant you can still write your points down and act like you are solely breastfeeding as far as points go).

What I ate on Friday and had a perfect points day (going to Fuddruckers and all!)

Breakfast
Fiber One Chocolate Bar....2 points

Fiber One yogurt....0 points

Red velvet cake Weight Watchers bar *you can only get at Weight Watchers meeting 1 point

Lunch:
Chicken salad sandwhich.....Light Bread 1 point, chicken salad from Garners 2 points
Bag of chips......3 points

Grapes not a half cup so....0 points

Dinner:
Fuddruckers 1/3 Cheeseburger with no mayo......9 points (looked up online and everything!)

Weight Watchers Brownie (find in the store) 2 points

Total 20 points

I also discovered this week with my parents that Ruby Tuesday Crab Cakes are only 6 points. Also, Weight Watchers chocolate chip cookies are great and they are only 1 point in the bread section (Thanks Sandi!). The key, I believe, is planning out what you are going to eat.

Have any other advice on good low point food choices, I would love to hear from you!

Fun Friday: Some Really Amazing Pictures

As you can see, not just any ordinary camera took these pictures. I got a professional camera! I have been drooling for one for years and if anyone knows me or reads this blog at all you know how crazy I am about pictures. I just got the basic professional camera from Canon (Rebel XS 1000). The Best Buy guy said since I was a little overwhelmed with the lens to just get the basic one (it was on sale of course), and then in a a couple of years you can get a better lens for my Canon (many different ones will fit...although they are pretty expensive). This is my 30th birthday present from Charlie and my Christmas present (my 30th birthday is this September)...God is so good to always provide us with what we need and more! I have such a huge passion for taking pictures.

I am still learning about all the different settings and so if you have any advice on how to take the best pictures possible for this camera or professional pictures in general please let me know (Charlie took the last picture).

Tuesday's Tip: Fiber for Your Babies is so Important!

Jackson sees a GI doctor every 3 months.

Do you know that your little one needs 10-15 grams of dietary fiber a day?

If you do not know how much your baby is getting I would definitely start figuring out how much your baby has a day so he or she does not end up having to see a GI doctor every 3 months...ha!


Even babies as young as 14 months old need fiber!

Some recommendations:

Any Fiber One products (even for Abigail).

I enjoy:

• Fiber One chewy bars Chocolate or Peanut Butter Bar
• Fiber One yogurt (I like strawberry)

I am trying this week

• Fiber One pop tarts
• Fiber One cereal (caramel)
• We are also trying Benefiber in drinks this week and every serving has 3 grams of fiber

Natural Fiber

• Raisin Bran Cereal- 7 grams
  
• Grits- 5 grams
• Baked Beans-3.5 grams
• Whole-Wheat bread-2 grams
• Graham crackers -3 grams
• Black-eyed Peas- 8 grams
• Baked Potato (small)- 4 grams
• Applesauce 3- grams
• Strawberries 1 cup- 3-4 grams

Jackson still has to be on Miralax (which has no fiber, but just brings water to his stomach...whatever that means) until I know without a doubt that he is having at least 10 grams of fiber a day. He starts off his day which a nutri-grain bar which does have 2 grams, but it is hard to get 10 grams in. Love to hear any advice on how to get more fiber in him!

Adults, we are supposed to have 20-35 grams of fiber a day. I really enjoy Fiber One products because they are filling, are low on the Weight Watcher's points scale, and they get my fiber in for the day.

Remember that cheese, bananas, and peanut butter can contribute to constipation. Of course, Jackson loves all three of these foods...ha!

Tuesday's Tip: Weight Watchers / No More Whining!

I do not have any money saving tips yet this week, but I am excited to get to go to SouthernSavers workshop Thursday night at the church. Hopefully I will have some tips after this workshop.

It was my first week back in Weight Watchers in over 2 years, and I lost 3.2 pounds the first week back! I was shocked because I went over 30 points for the week. I figured out that two nights a week, I was eating 1,000 calories at dinner...wow (at Moe's Tuesday nights when kids eat free, and one other night). I had Weight Watchers meals, fruits, slimfast, and just overall tried to eat very healthy. It was hard to find foods that were filling. Again, if you have any suggestions on low calorie filling food, please let me know what you enjoy!

I enjoy eating good foods, unfortunately I tend to overeat, and my goal this year is to glorify God with my eating. It is hard because loosing weight can easily consume my though life, and I just want to establish healthy eating patterns that glorify the Lord. The new book I am reading through right now is Love to Eat Hate to Eat by Elyse Fitzpatrick.

Second tip is a good little pamphlet by Ginger Plowman entitled "No More Whinning!" I got this along with the stop watch. Jackson now that he carries on conversations can really whine a lot.

She recommends:

1. Tell your child that God wants you to use self control with your voice, and you are whining.

2. Explain that love motivates you to train him, and tell him he may now wear the No Whine Watch, and when the buzzer goes off in three minutes, he may come back and ask for the juice in the correct way.

3. When buzzer goes off, have the child come back and ask for the juice in the appropriate way. For Jackson, I show him how he should ask for the juice.

I tried the watch last night, and it worked. He was a little excited about the watch and thought I had gotten him a watch to wear, but after everything was said and done he stopped whining. Praise the Lord!

I am also trying my best in public and at the house to get down on his level and look him in the eye when correcting him (Michelle does an excellent job at this and I had it modeled wonderfully by her). Especially in public, I almost whisper in his ear that what he is doing is not loving, and tell him what he should be doing instead. Speaking in a loud voice does get his attention, but it is yelling is not helping anything (although with boys it seems the only way to get their attention is to speak loudly), and is not pleasing to the Lord.

Do you have any tips on how to correct a child who is non stop whining?

Tuesday's Tip: CVS has had great deals this month / Weight Watchers

I have been to CVS every week since the new year began.

Yesterday, I got 6 12 pack of Pepsi products for $20. I only spent $14 because I had $6 in extrabucks from last week. I also earned $10 back in extrabucks just from this purchase.

Then, I turned around and got toilet paper for $12 or $14 (I cannot remember) and used by $10 in extrabucks, so I only spent either $2-4 on toilet paper.

I also joined Weight Watchers last week since these last 15 pounds from Jackson and Abigail are just not coming off. I am going to the one on Colonial Life Blvd (Wednesdays are not good days for me), and only paid $11 for the week plus $25 for the books.

I really think Weight Watchers is the best plan out there because it makes you count the calories you are eating through their points system.

Yesterday was hard though. All I had to eat yesterday was a yogurt, Weight Watchers meal for lunch, coffee with cream, and 1 piece of pizza, and I was not a happy camper. Thursday, I am going to the store to get lots of fruits and veggies to snack on. However, I think if I only had 23 points a day every day, I would be 100 pounds and underweight so I am trying to figure out a happy balance. I did manage to only have 24 points yesterday which was a complete miracle (I chewed gum when my stomach was not growling so I would not eat...my stomach has really stretched out after having my second baby).

Do you have any advice on low calorie filling lunches or dinners that I do not have to spend hours cooking?

Tuesday's Tip: Advice Wanted-Heat Pumps are Hard to Figure Out!

Even when we lived in apartments, we did not have a heat pump.

In the winter, our bills are crazy!

Our heat pump runs and NEVER turns off. This of course costs lots and lots of money.

I have had guys come out here many times, and they have fixed things, but in the winter it still never turns off unless I turn it off. Then, after I do turn it off, many times it goes up a degree in the house. I know that heat pumps are meant for Florida, but Columbia gets a lot colder than Florida!

So here are some of my solutions, but I would LOVE to hear your solutions.

1. Keep it on a cold 68 in the house. We are already cold at 70, so might as well keep it there it on what SC&G recommends.

2. Turn off the unit at lunch time to give it a change to regroup. Only turn it off for 30 minutes and then turn it back on (if I do not do this it will probably run for three weeks straight).

3. Last night, we went and got a Lasko heater at Walmart for $55 and keep in running in the den while we are home. The only problem is that since we have had a fire, we cannot keep it running while we sleep and do unplug it when we leave.

What are your recommendations? Have my kids sleep in a snuggie? Haha! Their rooms are freezing!

Tuesday's Tip: We Finally Met Our $150 Weekly Budget for Out to Eat Food and Groceries

I am so excited that we finally meet our $150 budget for both groceries and out to eat food. We went to Charleston last week so our out to eat budget was a lot!

$94.51 spent on out to eat food
$45.20 at Walmart---I think that is a record.

How did I only spend $45.20 at Walmart? It was just really luck. All I really had to buy was formula, nursery water, blueberry muffins, roles, etc. I had stocked up the week before and just did not run out of hardly anything this week. Last night, Jackson and I went to Walmart and I knew I was very close to meeting my goal so I hardly bought anything. I will have to go back Thursday for a big trip.

So, here are my three money saving tips for the week (since meeting my budget was just luck).

1. Get your coupons organized! I like the Hannah Hansen organizer, but she might not be taking any more orders right now. However, I saw some on ebay. And of course, order the paper for at least the weekend for the coupons. It is worth it!
   
2. Know by heart how much items costs that you buy every week. I use to write these items down and keep them in my planner, but I think I actually have most of them memorized now after almost two years of couponing.
3. Target has some great deals this week. They sent me some coupons for their generic brands. I am switching Abigail soon to their formula. Click here to see money saving mom's post.

* Also $30 Weekly Grocery Challenge has a good post on Menu Planning here. Click here to see the recipe for Crockpot Chicken Soup.

What is your money saving tip for the week?

Thursday's Tip: Weekly Teaching Your Toddler/Preschooler Bible Stories

This week we have been focusing on Zaccheus and I have read to Jackson about Zaccheus every day to him before his naps.

How did I choose to focus on Zaccheus this week?

Jackson's wonderful Sunday School teachers give him a sheet to take home for the week for children his age. This curriculum is made by Lifeway which is an excellent Sunday School curriculum. The story was about Zachheus so on Sunday I decided that we would focus on this story every day this week (I always want my 4th grade girls to do what I send home with them because it is an excellent resource for them, but these sheets have been way over Jackson's head, so I have been ignoring them for a while...). We have looked at the sheet that was sent home with him on Sunday every day this week, and he has loved it!

We also have read the first story from Read-Aloud Bible Stories Vol. 1 (Puckett) which is all about Zaccheus. I love this book and would highly recommend it. At the end of this first story, the author writes simply and beautifully, "Jesus knew Zaccheus was in that tree. He even knew Zaccheus's name. Jesus knows where you are---all the time. He knows your name too."

Jackson would love for me to read to him for hours every day and I am really enjoying this time with him. Not to long ago, he could not sit still for even a minute!

I do want to get him a real Bible soon. I want it so we can actually find where stories are from (this story is found in Luke). What would you recommend for his first real Bible? Is there any other books you recommend to help teach the Bible to my babies?

Today was animal day for school time. We played with all the animals we have (I got tons at the Tot Trade) and we had a zoo and then a farm. We learned that certain animals are at the farm, and certain ones are at the zoo. I strapped Abigail down in a seat and she learned as well.

We also read Brown Bear three times, and he can read the entire book to me! God has answered so many of our prayers for Jackson.

Updated Pictures: Fun Facts about Abigail 10 months old

They love each other so much!

Sunday after church (outfit from cousins Christopher and Becky...we are very thankful!)

I get this cute Polo outfit at the Tot Trade. The Tot Trade is wonderful!

Standing at Mimi's and Pop Pop's . She is so close to taking her first step.

Doing her favorite activity watching the Wiggle with Jackson. I got this very old Wiggle dvd from the Tot trade and they love it!

She has gotten a lot more hair recently!

Feeding Millie Boo

Abigail at Chick Fil A

Sick Abigail chewing on her saline spray.

Fun Facts About Abigail: 10 months old

Teeth: She now has six teeth that have broken through (four at the top, two on the bottom). Two more might be on the way. The pain of teething has not seemed as bad as it was with Jackson. She is not quite as dramatic as Jackson yet. She seems to roll with illnesses and pain a lot better than Jackson did at this age.

Favorite Show: Wiggles, Cedarmont Kids dvd, Yo Gabba Gabba

Words she can say: "mama, daddy, hey, she can say Pop Pop, and she is starting to say the beginning sounds of a word. I will say, "can you say cup, "ku ku" and she will repeat the ku ku ku part. It is really a blessing I have had all this speech therapy training! She sings along with songs by humming. I do think she has meaning when she says "mama" because she usually wants me when she does it. I know it would be great for her to have 10 to 15 words she can at least say by 1 years old, but development can come at any point. From 18 months to 2 years old is the huge jump in words usually.

Favorite Toy: Stuffed balls, her baby doll (she does really like all Jackson's toys...)

Favorite Thing to do that she is not suppose to do: EAT PAPER! She really loves to eat paper. She will crawl into a bathroom so quick and start eating the toilet paper before I can even blink. It is so crazy. Jackson never would actually eat things, but then again he has never been a big eater.

One of the best things About Abigail: She is really easy to take places and does so great in the church nursery. She does not fuss when I leave her, and every where we go (even at soccer games and practices) we always get the comments on what an easy great baby she is.

Jackson did not cry when I would drop him off in nursery situations either until he started walking and I took his formula away and gave him nothing but milk which caused him to be constipated and very unhappy in general. I will not make that mistake again. I will not be giving Abigail whole milk in a bottle, I will still give her bottles with formula in them and just try to get rid of the middle of the day bottle for one week, then the lunch bottle the next week and the last two bottles I will get rid of will be the morning bottle and the night bottle. I will give her milk in a cup, but will not be giving her 27 ozs of whole milk a day through a bottle like a did with Jackson which really turned out to cause him some major gastric problems.

*Added later: Another trick to getting rid of the bottle is to always offer food before the bottle. I can do this all day with Abigail accept first thing in the morning. Do you have any more suggestions on how to get rid of the bottle?