Babies & Puppies

People always seem to say that a puppy is practice for a child. After having a child myself, I realize that cannot be further from the truth! You don't have to get a babysitter to leave the house with a puppy and rarely ever cart the puppy with you to a restaurant. If you did, the puppy probably wouldn't start banging on the table and screaming, just to make a scene and embarrass you! Sure they both require a lot of work (and money...stinking vet bills!), but a puppy certainly doesn't keep you at home the way a baby does! That being said, there really are many similarities between babies and puppies! Here are some things I have noticed after raising both:

* Connor follows me around room to room, just as my puppy used to.
* Connor pees on the floor, just as my dog did before she was potty trained!
* Connor eats anything off the floor, just as my dog does.
* Both Connor and my dog get excited when you make your voice all high and squeaky...
* They also both respond to clapping!
* I can "lock" Connor up in a playpen the same way I used to lock my dog up in her crate...both of them cry when this is done to them!
* When sitting down, both of them want to be in my lap.

The comparisons could go on and on, but you get the picture. On a side note, I am SO THANKFUL that Connor doesn't chew up the carpet the way my dog did as a puppy! It makes life so much easier!

And an adorable picture of Connor to make this blog post worth reading!

Cheap Pleasures

After hearing about a polaroid app for the iphone, I decided I HAD to have it. Let me tell you, it was worth every cent of the 99 cents I had to pay for it! Taking pictures and shaking the phone to develop them...so fun! Connor laughs when I shake the phone in front of him to develop the picture. It's so cute. Here are some of the photos I have taken with it this week...


And if you too have an iphone, download this app now! It provides so much entertainment for such little mulah!

My Name

So, my name is Jessica.

Growing up, it was always Jessica, never Jess and certainly not Jessie. I was always insistent about that.

Then Ian came along...

He called me Jess, which I am fine with.

He introduces me as Jess, which I am not as fine with (and he totally knows this).

And slowly, my name became Jess. But, I do still always introduce myself as Jessica and always sign my name as Jessica as well. I just see Jess as a nickname, hence the reason I don't mind being called it, but don't like being introduced as it.

Today I realized the magnitude of my name change when I went to visit someone at work. When I asked for them, I gave my name as Jessica. When they came down, they said it confused them as they only know me as Jess. And it hit me...

My husband has single-handedly renamed me!

So, just to make me feel like I have some control over my name, every once in a while, would someone humor me and call me Jessica?

And by the way, in no way do I not like being called Jess. It's just that my name has always been Jessica until Ian came along. And apparently that guy has some pull because he has everyone referring to me as Jess!

Doonies Farm

Connor and I went with a friend over to Doonies Farm in Aberdeen yesterday. I don't think it is a real farm...or at least not one that actually produces anything. It is really a farm for kids (and kids at heart) to come and enjoy the animals. You can feed and pet the animals. Connor touched a few...though it was more hitting them than petting them! And one of the horses kept trying to lick (or maybe bite?) him. Stupid horse! The most fun for Connor was the playground. They had some little tractors for babies. Connor rode around the yard on it...while being the good mom that I am, I pushed him!





And for all you germ-a-phobes out there, do not fear. I held Connor's hands after he touched the animals so he couldn't put them in his mouth. Then, he got a good scrub down before we left...they actually had a room to sanitize yourself (including shoes) before you left...and a bath when we got home.

Scolty Hill

Trying to be the adventure loving family that we are, we went on a little walk/hike today. We found a place not far out of Aberdeen that had some hiking trails and decided to try it out. We packed up and off we went.

Connor hung out the side of the backpack pretty much the whole time. If we straightened him, within seconds, he was back to the side. I think it is because he can actually see ahead when he is hanging off to the side.


We had to stop along the way to give Connor some food. He was about to have a serious melt down if we didn't give him some food. Little guy is just like his mommy!


Connor was so tired for most of the walk (aka: cranky), but didn't fall asleep until the end. He looked totally uncomfortable, but I didn't know how to fix that. Plus, I really didn't want to wake him given that we still had some distance to walk...public meltdowns aren't all they are cracked up to be.


Oh, and for good measure, here is a picture of me and Connor...proof that I actually went on the walk too!

She's Crafty

Not, Not, NOT

Using the words "crafty" and "Jessica" in the same sentence should almost be considered illegal. I don't think I have a crafty bone in my body. Grand ideas, yes. Craftiness, no...which is ironic given how crafty my mom is. Anyway, a while back I picked up a dust ruffle that matched Connor's crib set on clearance. I had grand plans for that dust ruffle...the first of which, I am about to show you. I thought I would make a flag-banner of sorts with Connor's name on it. Sounds easy enough, right?

My first attempt was to use iron on printer paper. I would print out Connor's name and iron it on to the flags. I am a genius! Yeah, that didn't work. You could only see the blue lettering I chose on the white dots.


So, to the craft store I went. I had another idea. I would buy blue material and cut it into letters and somehow get it to stick to the material. Well, at the craft store, I discovered this iron on stuff that allows two materials to iron on to it...all of you crafty people out there are probably going, duh Jessica! I also acquired some blue fabric.

Now I had options. I could make the flags blue or polka dotted. I could do every other. After a phone conversation with my mom, I decided on blue flags with dotted letters. So away I went making my dotted letters. I ironed them on to the flags and they looked great. I was so proud of my un-crafty self. Then, when it came time to attach the flags to the rope, my plan fell apart. While ironing the flags around the rope, the letters began to fall off. Then I tried to super glue them back on...to which I discovered two things about super glue:

1. it shows thru fabric
2. if you use paper to press on the fabric, it sticks


Now I was beginning to loose hope in my wonderful idea. It was starting to seem too hard. Then, my mom suggested that I attach the flags to the rope first, then iron on the letters. That woman is a genius I tell you! I did that and voila, finally something I can be proud of (or at least not ashamed of)!


I have to admit, I am trying to not handle it too much as I am afraid it will fall apart!

***The title of this blog makes me think of a certain Beastie Boys song, but given that the song has nothing to do with the blog post, I thought I wouldn't mention it. But, I couldn't help myself! I had to point it out!

Aww, Sunshine

I have decided that I would be perfectly content living somewhere that is 66 degrees and sunny every day. I am not a "seasons" gal. Summer and sunshine year round is fine by me. There used to be a time, not so long ago, that 66 degrees was freezing to me. Now-a-days, it is the perfect temp!


Connor and I were able to enjoy our breakfast outside yesterday morning. He was definitely distracted by all that was going on. And, he kept picking flowers and trying to eat them. Then we met a friend at the park, had some ice cream, strolled around and enjoyed the company.

Oh, and today it 55 degrees and pouring down rain.