Cheap Baby Food

I originally intended on making Jackson's baby food, but have found that store-bought baby food is easier and cheaper.  We mashed up peas, bananas, avocados, oatmeal, etc instead of buying any Stage 1 food.  But pureeing Stage 2 and 3 foods is quite challenging without a food processor.  We currently cut up everything we're eating into bite sized pieces, so Jackson has sampled everything we've eaten. 

We've priced baby food at all the local grocery stores, Wal-Mart, Sam's, and Save-a-Lot.  Surprisingly, the cheapest we've found is at Big Lots.  We didn't even know Big Lots sold baby food until we were looking for discounted Christmas decorations earlier in the week.  You can get a 4.5 oz jar (Stage 2) for $0.30 and a 6 oz jar (Stage 3) for $0.50.  They have a pretty good selection and offer Beech Nut and Earth's Best (organic) for the same price.  Jackson LOVES all the flavors so far, so Jesse and I stocked up.  We bought 22 jars for less than $8, which is cheaper than anywhere else we've found.

Jesse made fun of me for creating a display pyramid.

Each day Jackson generally has 2 jars, 4 bottles of formula, and whatever table food we give him at dinner.  We'll replace the jars with table food once Jackson gets a few months older and Jesse and I have a more routine schedule.

Reunions

I've nearly pushed my limit when it comes to changing Jackson's schedule around.  We've stayed busy meeting up with friends from high school and work.  Jack is such a people person that I knew he would be fine around my friends, but he was so cranky before totally crashing once it was just the two of us. 

Wednesday afternoon I had two good friends from high school, Ellen and Laura, over for lunch.  They said they'd be there at 1 pm, so I hopped in the shower.  At 12:35 my best friend was standing in my bathroom saying, "I'm going to take Jackson downstairs".  I cooked the rice and beef for our taco feast in my bathrobe with a towel around my head while the girls played with Jack.  That's true friendship there!  As always, it was nice to catch up with them.

The following day I met up with Ellen and her sister (and mother) for bridesmaid dress shopping!  It is strange to think that I used to babysit her sister, and now she is a beautiful college freshman.  I am so excited to be a part of Ellen's wedding, as she was the maid-of-honor in my wedding four years ago.  After going to a few different places, we all fell in love with this short, figure-flattering dress at Belk's.  The dress is a very cool material, which is perfect for her outdoor summer wedding.  It also happened to be 40% off, which sealed the deal.  It's a stretchy material so I bought a size up just in case I have an extra bump in June. 

We also purchased simple, black sandals to go with the dress.  I'm so glad everything went smoothly and we were able to accomplish everything in just a few hours.  I just wheeled Jackson in the stroller with me to the dressing rooms, fed him while walking around the store, and put him in the Ergo at the shoe store. 

Jackson and I made it home in perfect time for our last nap of the day, before heading uptown to have dinner with my former teammates.  These women taught me everything I know about teaching, so I feel forever indebted to them.  While we meet up for dinner every month, they hadn't seen Jackson since he was a couple months old.  Since Jesse was closing tonight I had to bring Jackson.  My old co-worker brought finger puppets to entertain Jack.

After dinner we walked along the uptown streets to admire the Christmas lights and decorated trees.  Our school was within walking distance so we used to take field trips to the museums uptown.  It was so nice to simply be together.  (And yes, I made our waiter and a random stranger at Bank of America take our pictures.)  

Jackson was sound asleep before I pulled out of the parking deck.  Even though it was after 9 pm, he smoothly transitioned to the crib after getting in his pajamas.

Good Morning!

Jackson is such a morning person.  (Though, I guess all babies are.)  Since he is always sleeping when I leave for work, I forget how much I love his early morning smiles and bantering with Ducky.  Each morning when I come into his room he gets so excited he starts to pull up on the crib bumpers and put his hands between the slats.  He seriously goes crazy.  I can only imagine he's shouting, "Mommy!  Mommy, get me out of here.  It's time to play!" 

Dental Hygiene

Now that this guy is working on a mouth full of teeth, we thought it was time to start brushing them. 

The toothbrush that came with our safety/hygiene kit was too big.  We headed to Babies-R-Us to take advantage of a $5 gift card.  This tiny finger brush with edible toothpaste was perfect.

We now have a new step in our bedtime routine.  We will brush Jackson's teeth each night after his last bottle.  He was so relaxed and seemed perfectly content having his teeth and gums massaged.

 Happy brushing!

Attractive Home Solutions on a Budget

An alternative title to this post could be "Ikea is Amazing".

Problem: The bathtub has become a slip and slide for Jack.
Solution:  We found this adorable bathmat at Ikea for $2.

Problem: Cowbell has a habit of clawing at the toilet paper from the top and unravelling the roll. 
Solution: We found these toilet paper holders for a mere $0.49!  We bought three and Jesse installed them in each of the bathrooms.

Problem: We have a bad habit of leaving dirty burp cloths and bibs strewn throughout the downstairs.
Solution: I found this hamper that hangs on the back of a door for $5.  I put it on the back of the laundry room/mud room door.

Problem: The plethora of Christmas toys needed a new home. 
Solution: I divided the enormous pile into 3 smaller piles.  I used white storage boxes we previously bought at Ikea and placed the toys in the living room, nursery, and bonus room.

Problem: Jackson can no longer use his bouncy seat or bumbo and it's a pain to move the bulky high chair around.  We spend a lot of time in the kitchen and Jack has no where to sit when we are cooking.
Solution.  We let a friend borrow the bouncy seat and bumbo until her son outgrows them.  We purchased a very light weight high chair at Ikea for $20 that fits perfectly at our kitchen counter and is something he can grow with.

Problem: Mr. Nibbles likes to eat the Christmas tree and vomit all over the carpet.  The Rug Doctor cleaner has done nothing to remove the stains.
Solution: A huge tub of the generic version of OxiClean cost $6 and is sure to be a lifetime supply.  It works wonders (as shown by the before and after) and has multiple uses .

Christmas Day: It Truly Is A Wonderful Life

Jackson's first Christmas was amazing.  It turns out, he is a pro at opening presents and makes the best sounds and facial expressions ever.  I was eagerly awake before the boys were.  Jesse went downstairs to get the camcorder ready while I changed Jackson's diaper and took him downstairs.  Santa brought Jackson two gifts.  We tore open the first package just enough so Jackson could get a hold of the wrapping paper.  He went to town.  He seemed genuinely surprised that there were toys inside.

Jackson got distracted with wrapping paper and the cats, so Jesse ended up tearing the rest of the wrapping paper off.  After opening the gifts we ate our weekly pancake breakfast before getting ready for church.  Random note: While eating pancakes we witnessed our outside cat catch and kill a bird.

Church was a short, simple service of lessons and carols.  We drove directly to Gastonia to celebrate Christmas with my side of the family.  We feasted on turkey, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, mac-n-cheese, green beans, and more.  Jackson sampled everything.  After everyone was finished eating we distributed the many presents.  There is so much excitement it is difficult to catch everyones reactions as they open their gifts.

Of course, we continued our tradition of wearing our pajamas all day. 

After a few hours we made the hour-long drive to spend the evening with Jesse's family.  There were more presents to open and delicious food to eat.  Jackson enjoyed chicken and dumplings and green beans, then played with his family and new toys.

We are so very blessed to have involved, loving siblings and parents.  While it saddens me to know that Jackson will never know my parents, he is so fortunate to have an incredible MiMi and PaPa.  Their pride is evident.

We made it home just in time for Jackson's 7:30 bedtime. We unloaded the car and stacked Jackson's many gifts on the couch.  Considering Jesse and I spent a whopping $4 (in addition to using a $15 gift card) on Jackson's Christmas, I think Jack did okay.  This is one of many reasons why I love having a big family.

'Twas the Night Before Christmas

Jackson and I moved our ornament to the final spot in the Advent calendar.

Jesse had to work until 5:30, so we kept ourselves busy baking and doing crafts.  I wanted to make this mint serving tray I saw on Pinterest.  Jackson helped me sort the mints on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper.

It baked on 350 degrees for about 15 minutes.  (The directions said 8-10 but it took much longer for our mints to melt.)  Here is the finished product:

I went to work on making the red velvet cupcakes and cream cheese icing while Jackson napped in his crib.  The cupcakes looked very festive on the mint tray.

I had the diaper bag packed ready to go for when Jesse got home.  We quickly headed to church.  There was no nursery available for the Christmas Eve service, but Jackson did a great job.  Jesse and I passed him back and forth.  Jackson was ever curious during communion and the candlelighting. 

Our next stop was my sister's house for the annual Robinson Family Bingefest.  (Okay, nobody calls it that; but it would be an appropriate name.)  We enjoyed food and fellowship as always.

We have a long tradition of receiving Christmas pajamas on Christmas Eve.  Once home, we gave Jackson his pj's.  He was excited for bedtime and looked adorable in them.

I really wanted to start the tradition of reading "Twas the Night Before Christmas" before bedtime, but I couldn't find my copy.  We did find "The Southern Night Before Christmas" so we read that instead.  Jesse and I were amused at the Dale Earnhardt and Krispy Kreme references.  Jackson was apathetic.

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!