I am NOT Betty Crocker

Today is Mike's birthday so while he was at work, Owen and I made him a birthday cake- chocolate cake with peanut butter icing... his favorite. I was going to just use a box of chocolate cake mix, but then I found Aunt Judy's recipe that she had given me a while ago so I decided to try it because it seemed pretty basic.

So I put Adam down for his afternoon nap and Owen and I made the cake. Actually, Owen did almost everything himself. I made two 8 x 8 cakes so Mike could take one into work and Owen could decorate one. I asked Owen if he wanted to lick the bowl since that is the best part of making any cake. He tried a little and said "Ewww" and would not eat anymore. I just figured he was being strange.

So I put the cakes in the oven and took Owen up for his nap. When I came down, I decided I would make the icing a while and when I read the recipe for the peanut butter icing I realized that when Aunt Judy's recipe said 1 t of baking powder and 2 t of baking soda it meant "teaspoons" not "tablespoons". I had to look it up on the Internet to figure it out! Well I had used tablespoons, not teaspoons so I tried a little of the batter that was still in the bowl and it was gross. Now I understood why Owen was not excited to lick the bowl clean! I probably would have left it go, but I told Mike's secretary that he would be bringing in a birthday treat tomorrow and I could not send in a disgusting cake. So I took the cakes, which were rising VERY quickly from all that baking soda and baking powder, out of the oven and redid the entire cake recipe.

Adam woke up from his nap when there was about 10 minutes left for the cakes to bake in the oven and I went up to get him. He was unusually cranky for just waking up from his nap so I was rocking him when I remembered the cakes were in the oven! I ran downstairs and luckily they were not burned, but maybe a bit overdone.

I felt more like Amelia Bedelia than Betty Crocker! I'll be sure to post Aunt Judy's cake and icing recipe on my recipe blog. Thankfully I now know that T means tablespoon and t means teaspoon!

What a Weekend!

** I was lying in bed last night and I suddenly though I may have spelled "scraped" wrong when I wrote about our weekend, and sure enough, I did. As much as I try to proof read my writing, I know I spell a lot wrong!!

This weekend was a little crazy. Adam is finally starting to feel better after being sick for more than a week. He still has a lot of phlegm, but his cough is improving. Owen started to get a cold Thursday night. He was up a good part of the night sniffling. Stuffy noses are especially frustrating for him since he still sucks his thumb. So Saturday we decided to hang out at home and skip a birthday party we were supposed to go to since both boys had colds and I did not want to pass it on to any of the other kids. I was bummed we could not go.

I mentioned before how relaxed Adam gets when we carry him around in the carrier (especially when Mike carries him). On Friday afternoon I got home from running errands and Mike was unloading wood from my dad's truck and Adam was just hanging out in the carrier with his face buried in Mike's chest. He was not sleeping, but he was very warm and cozy.Saturday night we went out to eat to TJ Rockwells with Mike's mom for his birthday. I LOVE to eat there and it is an extra special treat when we do since we only go a few times a year.

This morning we went out to breakfast with Finny and Papa for Mike's birthday (which is tomorrow). We went to a place we have never been to before. The food was really good, but we had to wait a looooong time to get it. The boys were pretty good considering it took so long and Adam was extremely tired and ready for his morning nap.

We got home in time for Owen to go to Sunday School. Mike stayed here with Adam while he slept and I took Owen to his very first Sunday school class. He was a little hesitant for me to leave him there, but after a few minutes he was fine. When I picked him up after church he had a big smile and told me he had fun and met some new friends. He did so much better than I expected and I think it is going to be really good for him to be around new kids/faces. I loved going to Sunday school when I was little. Hopefully he will love it too!

After Sunday school things sort of went down hill. Owen was running on the sidewalk and fell and scraped his knee. It was not bad at all, but he was very dramatic about it and wined and cried for about an hour. Then, Mike was pushing him on the swing and walked away and Owen asked to be pushed higher so I gave him a push. At the same time my dad had just arrived and was walking toward the swing set. All of a sudden, Owen flew off the swing, flipped, and landed on his head/neck. I'm not sure why he let go, or if he just forgot to hang on, but I was so scared. He was going pretty high when it happened. He bit his tongue so his mouth was all bloody. He did not break anything, but he was really upset. However, not as upset as the scraped knee he got earlier. We cleaned him up and snuggled him and let him watch Sprout in our bed and take a nap in there too. He is complaining that his chest/sternum is bothering him. I'm a little worried about that, but he can move his arms and twist his body. I think it is just a pulled muscle, but I am going to keep an eye on it. I might make him wear a helmet when he swings from now on! ha! A little while later he got hit in the nose with a wiffle ball while he was playing baseball with Mike. So it's been quite the night. I am ready for Monday!

Sid the Science Kid

We don't let Owen watch too much TV during the day, but there are some great (and educational) shows that he enjoys watching. One is Super Why and the other is Sid the Science Kid. Mike, Owen and I love how Sid greets his friends in the morning when he gets to school. I just had to post it. It makes us laugh!

It's a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

The Birthday Party Blues

I was bummed that I could not go along with Owen to a birthday party at The Little Gym last Saturday night, but Adam was not feeling well at all so I stayed home with him. I sent the camera along with Mike so I could live vicariously through the photos and these are the pictures he took. Owen was watching me post these pictures and he saw this picture and said, "That was my favorite part!" He liked the pizza and cake.
Once I heard how the night went I was glad I stayed home! We have now implemented a new positive behavior chart here at the Reager household. Anytime Owen exhibits positive behavior such as saying "good morning", or "nice to meet you" to someone that he does not know all that well, but is definitely not a stranger, he gets a sticker. He has already earned a sticker today for sitting with all the other boys and girls on the carpet, and not on Papa's lap, during storytime at the library this morning. He refused to sit anywhere, but on my lap, last spring. Going to Sunday school will also earn him a sticker. I know he has a lot of anxiety about that since it is a fairly new place with new kids. Owen is shy in nature around people or places which are not that familiar to him. I do not want to make him someone he is not, but his "shyness" was starting to come across as "rudeness" and hopefully with our new system in place he will start to pay more attention to his interactions with other people. We are already seeing progress! He can't wait to fill up his sticker chart and pick out a brand new big boy bike!

Wordless Wednesday

I could not think of an idea for "Way Back Wednesday" so I am doing a "Wordless Wednesday" this week...Well, sort of wordless.


Owen's first bloody, fat lip from pushing his brother in the swing. This picture does not really do it justice. He had a very fat lip.

Adam is 7 Months Old!

Dear Adam,

Yesterday you turned 7 months old! Here's what you are up to:

- You weigh 19lbs 13 ounces. I know that because I had you to the doctor on Saturday because you were very fussy and had a really stuffy nose. As soon as we got to the doctor you were smiling, laughing, and kissing Dr. Schaffer. He said you were fine... no ear infection. Then, yesterday you got a lot worse and now have a pretty bad chest cold. So far you have not had a fever higher than 100.4, so I am hoping it passes and you are feeling better soon. I hate to see you so sick!
- You are wearing 12 month clothes. You pretty much skipped the 9 month size and went right to 12 months.
- You can say "lalalala" and "dadadadada" and I swear I hear you say "mmmmmmuuummmm" when you want me to come get you out of your crib. Of coarse we think you are saying Lala, Dada, and Mama, but I am not sure you know what you are saying!
- You are starting to crawl on all fours, but still get around on your belly too.
- You can pull yourself up to your knees and a few times you've pulled all the way up to your feet... like today when you climbed to the third step (with mommy behind you!)
- You can go from a sitting position to a crawl. You have even gone from a crawl to a sitting position a few times.
- You love Cheech and try to chase after him and grab his tail.
- You are starting to eat a little better, but you're not a great eater at all. You like oatmeal with pears, any kind of noodles, and rice rusks. That's about it.
- You are starting to get into everything. Your favorite is the wash cloth and dish towel drawer.
- You poor thing... not only are you feeling so sick right now, but you just got an eye tooth and now your top front tooth is coming in. Your gums are so red and swollen. I think that's been a reason for your fussiness lately too.
- You love to be carried around in the front Ergo carrier. Mommy will be very sad when you get too big for that. I love it just as much as you do (and so does daddy!). You are so squirmy, but the minute we put you in your carrier you get very calm and relaxed.
- You enjoy your walker and are getting pretty fast in that thing! I have to watch my toes because it hurts when you run over them!
- You love when I sit on the floor while you crawl all over me and up onto my lap.
- You are ticklish on your sides and under your armpits.
- You don't like loud noises or when your brother cries. In fact, if you hear him crying, many times you will cry too.

You are such a sweet baby and we love you very much! Happy 7 month birthday!

Mommy

Race Day

I always wanted to run a marathon. It was an item on my "to do before I die" list. While I was pregnant with Adam and watched Mike complete his first marathon I knew I wanted to try a race once I was no longer pregnant. I also knew it would be a perfect opportunity to get in shape after I had Adam, but I was also realistic and knew that seven months after giving birth was not the time to attempt a full marathon especially when most of those months I was still breast feeding which makes training for any race more of a challenge (for me!). I ran cross country my junior (or senior... I forget) year of high school and I loved it. Rob Bare was my coach and the things he taught us helped me to enjoy running long after high school. I thought the half-marathon would be a perfect distance so we decided to do the Harrisburg Half-Marathon.

I was so nervous for today's race. Every night leading up to the race I had nightmares. In one dream I came in last place and got lost because everyone was so far ahead of me I did not know the correct route. In another dream, I showed up on race day to find out it was a triathlon and part of the race would be a swim in the Susquehanna River. So needless to say, I am glad it's over.

It was raining pretty hard when we left this morning. Mike said rain is the "great equalizer" and I tried to tell myself it is better than extreme heat. The rain ended up stopping right before race time and there was just an occasional mist during the race. It was perfect running conditions if you ask me. The sun was not out so I was not overheated or squinting and I never felt really thirsty because the mist was keeping me a little hydrated.

Mike was a great coach. He motivated me and pushed me to do my best the entire time. I never wanted to walk, but there were times where I wanted to slow down and he'd make sure I didn't let myself slow my pace. He told me to make sure I was giving it everything I had... and I did. I averaged a 9 minute mile the entire time which was great for this 10-minute mile girl. My goal was to finish in 2 hours and when we crossed the finish line it was exactly 2 hours. The race results are not posted yet, but I can't wait to see my official time. The highlight of the race was seeing Owen, Beth, my mom, Eric, and my friend Crystal, her kids, and her husband (who also raced) at the finish line! I really wish Adam could have been there, but he was way too sick, so thankfully Papa was able to stay with him this morning.

It was a great day. It was painful, exhausting, and mentally challenging, yet fun and so rewarding. I am just hoping my purple toe nail does not fall off. I can't wait to be a spectator and cheer Mike on at the Hershey Half Marathon in a couple weeks. Thank goodness I did not decide to run in that race too. I am "raced out" for now.

Here are some pictures from the race.

Owen and Eric checking out the finish line.


The bridge to the finish.
Owen was not being very cooperative. I think he was cranky from having to wait so long for us to finish.

Update: I just got this e-mail...

Congratulations on finishing the 2010 HARRISBURG HALF MARATHON
on September 12, 2010.

There were 97 finishers in the Female 30 to 34 age group and
902 finishers in the race.

Your overall finish place was 466 and your age group finish place
was 32. Your time of 2:01:01.40 gave you a 9:14 pace per mile.

Full results posted at www.parunners.com

We hope to see you again next year.

Rats! I really thought I did it in 2 hours flat. Oh well, I am still happy with my results.

Nine Eleven

I was going to do a post about my terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. Adam has the worst cold he's ever had. He hasn't really eaten or slept in 24 hours. I saw his first tear today as he cried and cried and it broke my heart. I took him to the doctor, but his ears are fine. I have been having nightmares all week about the race tomorrow and I am scared to death I will come in last place. It is supposed to rain too. And this morning when I was almost finished making a great motivating playlist to listen to during the race, I accidentally deleted it. Owen went to a birthday party tonight. Thank goodness Mike took him. He clung to Mike the entire time, cried, and would not play with any of his friends even though he sees them all the time at Linda's house.

However, after I thought about it and realized what today was... September 11th, I felt pretty shallow.

I will always remember exactly where I was and what I was doing on that beautiful, clear day. I was a senior in college and my roomates and I had just come back to our apartment for lunch after being in class all morning. We turned on the TV and saw the devastating news. I cried and called my dad to see if I should come home. I was very scared. Everyone was on their cell phone calling loved ones. Some were trying to get in touch with family members or friends that were in New York City at the time. I knew that things would never be the same and I questioned if I would ever want to bring children into this awful world.

I know for a fact there are moms, daughters, and wives out there having a worse day than I am and suddenly my horrible day does not seem so horrible after all.

Things that Make Me Smile

There's just something about a freshly bathed baby wearing cozy feet jammies on a crisp fall-like night. Especially when those same jammies were worn by his big brother when he was a baby.

I just love to watch my babies while they sleep :)

Speaking of babies... yesterday I went for a run while pushing Owen in the jogger stroller. I don't enjoy that very much as it messes up my pace and stride and hurts my feet and back. Anyway, Owen was very chatty, as usual, and somehow it came up and I told him he is my baby. He thought that was funny and said he is a big kid, not a baby, but I assured him that even when he is a grown up and a daddy himself, he will STILL be my baby :)