Party Planning Momma Part 1

I am so excited for Harrison's first birthday party! Not because I want him to be a year old, but because I can not wait to celebrate the first year of this precious little boy's life with our family and friends! About a month ago Mahlon and I decided on a Sock Monkey theme for his party, I ordered party supplies and waited patiently for them to arrive. Guess what, THEY ARE HERE!

Party hats

Sock monkey plates and napkins

Red and brown balloons with "1" on them

Red with white polka dot fabric

Balloons

These I made, wooden letters painted gray for his banner.

Tons more supplies!

There is still plenty of planning and work to be done but I am very excited to be getting started!
More posts to come as the party gets closer!

The Good Wife's Guide

After I heard about this article, I had to check it out. Once I read the article, I had to share!
How would you measure up to Good Housekeeping's 1950's Good Wife's Guide?

• Have dinner ready. Plan ahead, even the night before, to have a delicious meal ready on time for his return. This is a way of letting him know that you have be thinking about him and are concerned about his needs. Most men are hungry when they get home and the prospect of a good meal is part of the warm welcome needed.
• Prepare yourself. Take 15 minutes to rest so you'll be refreshed when he arrives. Touch up your make-up, put a ribbon in your hair and be fresh-looking. He has just been with a lot of work-weary people.
• Be a little gay and a little more interesting for him. His boring day may need a lift and one of your duties is to provide it.
• Clear away the clutter. Make one last trip through the main part of the house just before your husband arrives. Run a dustcloth over the tables.
• During the cooler months of the year you should prepare and light a fire for him to unwind by. Your husband will feel he has reached a haven of rest and order, and it will give you a lift too. After all, catering to his comfort will provide you with immense personal satisfaction.
• Minimize all noise. At the time of his arrival, eliminate all noise of the washer, dryer or vacuum. Encourage the children to be quiet.
• Be happy to see him.
• Greet him with a warm smile and show sincerity in your desire to please him.
• Listen to him. You may have a dozen important things to tell him, but the moment of his arrival is not the time. Let him talk first - remember, his topics of conversation are more important than yours.
• Don't greet him with complaints and problems.
• Don't complain if he's late for dinner or even if he stays out all night. Count this as minor compared to what he might have gone through at work.
• Make him comfortable. Have him lean back in a comfortable chair or lie him down in the bedroom. Have a cool or warm drink ready for him.
• Arrange his pillow and offer to take off his shoes. Speak in a low, soothing and pleasant voice.
• Don't ask him questions about his actions or question his judgment or integrity. Remember, he is the master of the house and as such will always exercise his will with fairness and truthfulness. You have no right to question him.
• A good wife always knows her place.

The Kids' Table

Now that Harrison is transitioning from blended baby foods to table foods we are paying closer attention to what we are eating! I wouldn't say that we have ever been "unhealthy eaters" but now that he is eating a lot of the same foods we are eating, I am making sure to have more balanced meals each night. Luckily for us, he isn't a picky eater at all. He is always willing to try whatever we put in front of him- as long as he is the one getting to do the "feeding" part! I know that we will have our fair share of food struggles in the future, but for now things are going smoothly. With that being said, I thought I'd take a minute to share some of his favorites and a few tricks that I have learned through trial and error for all the other moms making this same transition.
Tips first!
1)One thing that I make sure to do whenever we are eating is to have 2 familiar foods and 1 new food on Harrisons tray. For example, last night we had a cookout and I made baked beans. He had never had baked beans before so I made sure that along with the "new" baked beans he was trying that he also had strawberries and wheat crackers(both things that he has already had and likes). Once he got a feel for the texture of the beans, they were a hit!  
2) These diced foods by Gerber are awesome! 
 
They come in a self feeding tray (which Harrison always dumps out and throws in the floor) and are just the right size for his little fingers to grab a hold of!

3) Put more on the tray that you expect them to eat- a large quantity of it will end up in the seat, on their clothes, in their hair and on the floor!
4) Give them options on their tray. I guess this goes hand in hand with number one, but again- choice and familiarity have proven to keep this transition smooth for us.
5) If they act interested in what you are eating, let them try it. You never know what they may like. For example- olives. YUCK! I hate olives but Mahlon loves them. He was eating some a few days ago and Harrison was having a fit for some. I kept telling him no because they are nasty but he was not taking no for an answer so we gave him one- he loved it! What a strange kid :)
6) Be ready for a mess! Remeber, they are learning a new skill and probably exploring a number of new textures as well.

As for his favorites,he will ALWAYS eat animal crackers, any pasta, cheerios, puffs and fruits. 
Here are a few shots of him exploring some new foods :)

                                          

I'll continue to share any tricks, tips, and favorites we discover along this journey under "The Kids Table" label. Happy transitioning!

T-e-n 10!

Our sweet Harrison is 10 months old today!

Momma had to be fast with the camera today! We are on the move! 

 That means that he will be ONE YEAR OLD in only 62 short days. That is just crazy to me! I know everyone always says "time files" and "they grow up way to fast" but I never realized that it would be this fast! 

Harrison is developing such a little personality these days!

He put the foam letter on his head and would crawl around until it fell off then stop and put it back on again and keep going ;)

He loves to play his own little version of hide-and-seek.
He will crawl into another room and I'll say "Where's my Harrison?" then I'll hear him squeal and shut the door to the room that he's in. When I go and open the door he just laughs and laughs as he crawls away from me. It's really too cute!
He has learned to share, even though most of the time what he wants to share is an already chewed on piece of food ;)
Another favorite pass time of his is throwing the ball. I'll have to admit, he has a pretty good little arm. He can throw the ball right to you, even if it is with his left hand!

He is talking more and more every day. He has added "ba" for ball and "hi" to his vocabulary since last month. He "says" all kinds of stuff all day long but I have yet to decode any more of it :).
He now has 4 teeth! 2 on the bottom and 2 new ones on the top. With these new pearly whites he can chomp away on just about anything! His current favorite snack is animal crackers and he is very determined to feed himself most days (which makes for quite a challenge for Momma!)

He is cruising around the house more. He will pull himself up and take steps while holding on to the couch, table, chairs , window seal or whatever is around and if you hold on to his hands he will walk all the way across the room but he does not seem to really like his push toys. I think they move too fast for him and he just gets frustrated using them because his little feet do not move as fast as the toys roll with him pushing on them.

He loves being outside, swinging, sliding and going for walks in the stroller.

Here's to another fun filled month!