Meet the Johnstons

Congratulations to the Mr. and Mrs. Kevin and Yasmin Johnston!!

Yesterday, June 27th, Jake's good friend from flight school married the beautiful Yasmin Akhtar. The wedding was beautiful despite the rain and it was lots of fun to hang out with Jake’s friends and their wives. A big thank you to my in-laws for watching Isaac during the wedding. There were a couple babies at the wedding, but it was nice to kick back and enjoy adult fun and be worry free since I knew Ike was having a blast with his Springsteen grandparents.

During the wedding I had to pump a couple of times and Jake kept me company. Later we found out that a rumor spread that Jake and I were getting lucky in the utility closet. That’s a much more fun alternative to the truth, so I guess there’s no need to really argue it. ;)

There was also a zip line at the wedding. This was a groomsmen adventure, but one too fun not to share. The zip line was not necessarily for guest use. It was discovered by the group after they took some wedding party pictures and Jake decided he would be the first to test it out.

Next Adam took a ride on it. During the course of the first two zip liners the string got a little tangled which caused the following scene:

Hilarious. 

Kevin is an awesome guy and it was fun to be a part of his and Yasmin's day. 

Life and Humpback Whales!

Today has been busy, busy, busy. The first item of the day was Isaac's 6 month appointment with the pediatrician. He is a skinny boy in the 30% for weight, in the 80% for length and 85% for head circumference. So we continue with a long and lean smart child. ;) The pediatrician was not surprised at the numbers since he is moving more and therefore burning more calories. Isaac is meeting all of his milestones, so all is well! He also got three shots today. Thankfully he does not cry long and pretty much goes on with the day like nothing happened. He's such a trooper. The pediatrician also mentioned that now he shouldn't have to get anymore shots until he's 1! I love knowing that his immune system is getting nice and strong and I am so thankful for the advances we have in medicine to protect us at such a young age.

He really liked the pediatrician's watch

After his appointment we grabbed a coffee and drove to Port San Luis to check out the humpback whales- SO COOL! I love wildlife.

Isaac watched the whales in his dreams :)

I love getting to hang out with Jake. Just getting to sit and laugh and watch the whales together was enough to completely make my day.

Later I made a yummy dinner of roasted root and winter vegetables (parsnips, celery root, turnip, garnet sweet potato, carrots, and butternut squash) and an Orecchiette pasta dish with sausage and arugula. Thankfully both were very yummy. The only downside was that at one point my hands were oily from putting the vegetables on the cooking sheets, Isaac started crying and my phone was ringing with a girl that I was suppose to have a little meeting with about doTerra. It was all a little stressful, but in the end worked out ok. And I am reminded that this is, after all, the life of being a mom.

Isaac Weekly Update: Week 27

This week has been pretty uneventful (that's a good thing)!

Maybe that's not entirely true, since he did have his first boo boo from falling over (the first of many I'm sure)! He is sitting up more and loves to grab things and babble and laugh. He is also letting out a few more squeals lately, which are not my favorite. He still loves his bouncy chair and even though he's not eating a bunch, he does enjoy sitting with us at the table. So far we have tried avocado, peach sauce, carrots and applesauce. Peach sauce has definitely been his favorite, but I still can't say he's really eating the food- more just playing. He has a sock monkey that one of my Sweet Adelines made for him (she makes one for each of her great grand children and she has made MANY)! I think they look a little creepy, but he loves it. very cute.

Today Jake came home. We had to drive to Santa Barbara to pick him up, but it was a beautiful drive and of course it was worth it! Isaac needed to sleep, so it worked well because he sleeps wonderfully in the car. Once we picked up Jake, we found a spot I could feed Ike before we headed back to San Luis Obispo. Isaac thought having Jake back was great fun and ended up doing many of these poses to look at Jake instead of focusing on the task at hand.

It's a little frustrating, but how can you get mad at that adorable expression?! Once we got home I had a little spread waiting for Jake.

I made some smoked salmon spread (a recipe from who else but Mrs. Ina Garten) and had some crackers to go with it. Ina always has something beautiful for her husband when he's returning from work, so this was my shot at doing something "lovely." It might not be as beautiful as her layouts, but it sure was tasty! It was a great way to wind down after a long day and a fun way to welcome him home.

Mom Fail.

Every night when I put Isaac to sleep, I pray that he comes to know his savior, Jesus Christ, that he feels the love of God and of Jake and me and that God gives Jake and I mercy for the mistakes we make as parents. Today I needed that mercy. It was an accident, but I still felt a "bad mom" moment. Today Isaac hurt himself- a full on face-plant. The main reason I feel it deserves my first "mom fail" is because it drew blood. The worst part is that I was watching him and had him positioned so that if he should fall over he would land on the bathtub rug/mat, but gravity worked diagonally and suddenly Ike fell to the floor and smacked his sweet face. I picked him up and cuddled him. Then I took him outside since he loves the plants and he quickly quieted down. Then I noticed his lip.

I really blame the little cut lip on his top two teeth. Either way I felt like I failed him. There was also a time today when I realized he hadn't been changed in awhile and found he was in a soaked diaper. What makes me feel worse is that earlier today Jake was half way home when he got asked to do  a "junior man" trip (meaning a trip that he would get paid double for). Since we'll be traveling this month, we decided it would be best for him to take the trip and come home late tomorrow. So he got on the next flight back to Las Vegas from Phoenix to work. So here we are, Jake: the hard working husband, bringing home the bacon and then there's me: the mom who's injuring their son. Oy vey. Tonight's prayer included the words, "Thank you Lord that your mercies are new every morning" (Lamentations 3:22-23). It also helps that Isaac has been happy, smiley and fun all day. I hope he's this forgiving when he's older!

Some other pictures from today:

Which topic? MEPS

Which item to talk about? Today was a good day. I say that because in comparison the last couple days have been less than good. It had nothing to do with Isaac, he has been wonderful. I simply haven't been feeling super happy lately. So there's that topic. There's the learning curve of essential oils that I am beginning to dabble in. And there's planning for our Michigan trip that's happening at the end of this month. I think those are the main items. For today's post I think I'll focus on the first topic of emotions. One way that I evaluate my mood and an overall "how I'm doing" is through a process called:

MEPS

Have you ever done MEPS? It's one of my favorite self-assessment tools. A friend of mine introduced me to it in college and every now and then I use it alone or with others to get a better idea of how they are really doing. This is how you do it: go through each adverb and pick the first word that comes to your mind that describes how you are feeling at that moment. There are few boundaries to this exercise as the words do not have to be adjectives (though they can be). The word can be whatever you want as long as you can explain it. So pick a word and then explain why you chose that word. Now it sounds simple, but for some (like my husband), thinking and describing your feelings abstractly can be difficult. Sometimes Jake can find words easily for some and not so easily for the others. For those times I usually give him a scale and that can help. For example, if you are getting stumped with "Emotionally," you can think of it this way- on a scale from 1 to 10 (1 being horrible and 10 being amazing) how are you feeling right now. "Mentally" can be on a scale from 1 to 10 (1 being feeling dumb/bored/mentally uninterested in anything and 10 being mentally engaged, learning, etc.) how are you feeling. Make sense? I did it during my walk today with Isaac and this is what I came up with:

Mentally: together. 

I've been learning about essential oils and there are things about the business side that frustrate me and have been keeping me from really understanding and figuring out how to best use them. Today I finally feel like some of the information is coming together. I am also enjoying planning our family's trip to Michigan and those plans also are coming together.

Emotionally: better.

As I mentioned earlier, the last few days have been a little rough for me emotionally; nothing big, but a little extra heaviness. Today has definitely been better. I think it's because I was able to get more things done, like exercising, putting clothes away, etc.

Physically: good.

Deep words, huh? haha. Sometimes my words really aren't that deep, but that's the beauty of this exercise, they really don't need to be. Physically I feel good, mostly since I got to exercise. I downloaded the "7 MWC" app and have been using that to exercise once in awhile on top of my daily walking. It stands for 7 minute workout challenge. It's been good, but I'm sure I need to do it more often to continue to lose weight! I no longer look like I'm pregnant, but I can definitely still lose a few pounds. Overall, I feel good.

Spiritually: beginning.

There are times in my walk with God that I feel like I'm going back to the first part of our relationship. Recently I got to sit in on a conversation between my brother-in-law, Adam and my old youth pastor. It was fun. It's been awhile since I've listened to or participated in a theological sparring. One of the things that excites me most about the body of Christ is how different we all are and how each individual's gifts combine to serve in remarkable ways. (reminds me of power rangers!) I always pray and acknowledge Christ in my life, but I'm feeling the push to take more initiative in my relationship with Him, even it if just means reading one scriptural passage a day.

So there it is- MEPS. Give it a try!

Isaac has been so fun these last few days. He's smiley and sweet and cute. Jake has been away working, so here are some pictures I have taken of Ike for him:

 

 

 

Love this kid.

1st Half Birthday

Today is unique because Isaac's monthly birthday falls on his weekly birthday (the little things mothers notice). Today Isaac is 6 months old and 27 weeks old. He is quite the cute boy as you can tell from the picture. His top two teeth have come through and one more tooth has joined his bottom two on the right side. We gave him a chunk of apple to "gum," but with all those teeth he ended up biting off a piece. He ended up swallowing it, but not without some gagging, so extra caution is taken with this little boy! Today we tried giving Isaac some peach sauce (from last year's Palisade peaches!) and he enjoyed it quite a bit. He's still getting use to swallowing, but he is getting better. What's amazing to me is how he manages to get it EVERYWHERE! Afterwards, Jake and I gave him a bath and I found some of the sauce on the back of his head! crazy boy. Crazy and fun.

Ike is still ever so smiley and constantly reaching for things. He will grab and pull just about anything. He is getting better at sitting up and pushes up on his arms when lying down, but no signs of crawling soon.

He was a great sleeper on our trip this last week and even though he required a little extra entertaining for the last few hours of the drive, overall he was great.

Lazy Day

Today has been a day of recuperation or at least that's what I'm calling it since all Jake and I want to do is SLEEP! For this reason, it's been more difficult to put Isaac down for his naps and he's ended up taking them on me.

It's better to have him sleep in his crib, but the feeling of a little one sleeping so soundly on my chest is something that I will never get tired of.

I was able to get out in the beautiful weather and walk with Isaac today, but that was pretty much our only excursion. Mostly, we hung out, took pictures and simply lounged. Nice to be able to do that.

Isaac Weekly Update: Week 25

Life is good when this boy sleeps...

Today Isaac is 26 weeks old and working on THREE teeth. I thought it was only the top two and then realized there is one coming in on the bottom as well. poor boy.

Week 25 (5/26-6/1): With the incoming teeth, life has been a little tougher this week. There have been a couple "normal" days, but overall his sleeping was off both during the day and at night which has effects on every other aspect of life. Today for example, he only ended up napping for a combined 1 1/2 hours. This results in a bipolar baby who smiles one second and then suddenly starts screaming the next. Not only is it difficult to deal with these teenage girl type mood swings, but it also inhibits me from getting other things done. I can't feel too sorry for myself though, I don't have teeth pressing through my gums!

This is a typical face this week:

He is pressing his bottom teeth against his top. Many times he makes little noises while he's doing it and in these pictures he is also exploring Jake's face. :)

Isaac also loves water bottles and is getting better and better at grabbing them.

As my last post mentioned, we started Ike on solids, but we have yet to try another feeding since the 1st. We will probably give him some tomorrow since he needs a bath anyway.

Avocado

I liked today. Jake came home after a long 6 day stretch, I got to catch up with a good friend, we were able to FaceTime with Jake's parents and (the best part) we napped. :) We also introduced Isaac to his first solid food! (pictures to follow) I was much more proactive in getting photos today, so I will share today's news through those.

Isaac and me waiting outside for Jake to get off the plane

My dear friend, Rachel.

Isaac acts very interested in food, so I have been aching to begin him on solids, but I wanted to wait until Jake came home. Originally I was going to wait until his 6 month birthday, but it's only one week away, so what the heck! I decided we would start him on avocado. This may have been a little ambitious, since (as my mother pointed out) it is not sweet at all like breast milk. I did try to mix some breast milk in to help the transition, but, well, you can see from the photos...

Started off good

hmmm

what is this taste?

it's suppose to go down my throat?

What did you give me?!

He ate it, but I wouldn't say he did so with gusto. Perhaps we'll do something sweeter for his half birthday, like applesauce. I can't believe we're already at this point in his development! Exciting times.

Isaac had a good time talking with his Michigan grandparents:

And my favorite part of our day- napping.

These Springsteen boys love their naps!